Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Firearms cross the Mersey...
Scouse gangs at heart of UK weapons trade
ORGANISED crime gangs from Liverpool “dominate” the firearms and drugs trade outside London, it emerged yesterday.
Latest intelligence from the National Crime Agency reveals the city is at the heart of high volume imports on the black market.
NCA experts looked at encrypted messages from criminals.
They suggested the city’s geography, history of organised crime, and hi-tech criminal innovations used by gangs were behind its rise.
The agency’s National Firearms Threat Centre worked on Operation Venetic, the UK’S largest lawenforcement initiative.
They found more than 70% of all links to weapons examined led to Liverpool and the North West. Rob Hickinbottom, lead on the NFTC, said most cases had a “very strong connection” to the area. NFTC analysis also found that Merseyside had a network of gun factories.
They were being used to convert low-calibre weapons such as the
Czech Skorpion and Slovakian Grand Power into automatic guns.
Matt Perfect, of the NCA, said: “The evidence is that the North West groups pretty much dominate the rest of the criminal communities in the UK.”
A low-calibre Glock handgun bought for £135 in eastern Europe could be converted in 90 seconds to a 9mm weapon sold for up to £5,000 by one £3.50 plastic switch.
Most gang leaders direct largescale import of firearms and drugs from abroad, including places like Holland, Dubai and Spain.
Merseyside Police have made 30 arrests over the past month seizing guns, ammo, £2million in cash, 25 kilos of Class A drugs, 450 cannabis plants, 28 kilos of Class B drugs and 1.5 tons of mixing agents.