Fugitive siblings arrested in Thailand get 30 years after evidence from supergrass
with Joseph Mul hare, a notoriously private individual.”
James McLaughlan, 43, of Kilwinning, Ayrshire, was given a similar sentence after pleading guilty to identical charges.
James Clark, 48, who lived in the same town, was jailed for seven years and seven months for his role in the gang.
Steven Clark, 42, of Stevenston, Ayrshire, was given a sentence of seven years and two months a f ter admit t ing similar conspiracy charges. Police also discovered 200kg of Benzocaine, an adulterant for cocaine.
As news of their associates’ arrests spread, the Mulhares left the UK separately in the summer of 2017, later meeting in Morocco before travelling the globe in a bid to evade justice.
Their downfall came about after one of their couriers, Ronnie Bateman, turned Queen’s evidence and revealed how the gang operated.
The 40-year- old, who is yet to be sentenced, became disillusioned after running up a £10,000 drugs debt.
Unsworth said: “Ronnie Bateman provided a detailed account which confirmed much of what the investigation had identified but also provided a peek behind the curtain into the day-to-day mechanics.”
Judge Brian Cummings QC, sentencing Joseph Mulhare, told him: “I’m sure the drugs seized in this case represent the tip of a much larger iceberg.”
Detective Chief Inspector Ian
Hussey, of the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit, said: “I would like to thank the NWROCU police officers who worked so hard on this operation and our colleagues in Merseyside Police, Police Scotland and the Crown Prosecution Service for assisting and supporting us during this wide-ranging and ongoing investigation.”
Maria Corr, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “When the authorities moved in on the Mulhares’ empire, they turned tail and fled and left the others to take the blame.”
The Mulhares fled and left others to take the blame