Major drug kingpin downplayed huge profits as simply “ticking over” while running a vast drug operation.
Ian Spackman avoided street fights. He ran things from the top levels. His network was sophisticated and used fake companies for drug distribution, covering Blackpool and Cumbria.
Spackman and his friends loved luxury. They took fancy trips, wore nice watches, and drove expensive cars. They lived in big, fancy houses. He bragged about earning £80,000 every two weeks, overseeing drug schemes in Lancashire and beyond, extending to Merseyside and the Isle of Man.
His group supplied cocaine to gangs, covering Merseyside and northern England. He also ran a cannabis import plan, bringing 200kg of cannabis into the UK. The drugs landed on a Liverpool estate, but he stayed away from street fights, maintaining connections to those involved.
The ECHO reported Spackman knew the Fernhill gang, which was linked to drugs and violence. The ECHO looked at Spackman’s criminal empire and examined how police took it down.
Spackman didn’t sell drugs on the street. Instead, James Gannon and Tom Collins helped him, using global contacts to supply lower gangs. Cocaine went from Liverpool across the north, and millions of pounds flowed in. They hid using sneaky tricks, keeping them ahead of the law at first.
They faked a plumbing company, called P&M Plumbing, to help import cannabis from Spain. The gang rented a unit in Bemrose industrial estate. Vans brought cannabis from Barcelona, full of toilets and cat litter.
Peter Mulvaney acted as the director, wearing a tie to sign for deliveries, giving the appearance of legitimacy. One delivery had 50kg of cannabis, showing how big the operation was.
Some of the cannabis went to the Isle of Man, where the drug was worth more. They hid it in a van’s floor to facilitate the smuggling.
Stephen McNally prosecuted the case. He stated the group reached across England and extended to international areas. Liverpool was the center from which Class A drugs went all over England, including places like Blackpool and Cumbria.
The group also dealt in cannabis. This was not street dealing, he said. The dealers were not “end users”. Different people had different roles. However, all were drug dealers on a big scale, and the profits show that scale.
Police watched the drugs and cash movements. They also monitored the lavish spending. Cops tracked about 200 supply trips. Cocaine went north from Liverpool. Cash moved the other way.
Police think the gang controlled 20-50kg of cocaine and managed 200kg of cannabis. This does not include drugs for Mersey gangs. Police raided homes in March 2017. This ended the gang’s activities.
Marc Campbell’s home was among those raided. Police used an armored vehicle to break in. Spackman’s fancy Maghull property was hit too. Spackman was linked to Fernhill gang leaders, Liam Johnson and Kyle Shiels.
The gang caused problems in south Liverpool, flooding the area with drugs and making fun of the police. The police took the gang down in 2016. It is unclear how Spackman knew the Fernhill gang, but the Spackman probe may have targeted those linked to that gang.
Detectives wanted to target people above Shiels. They aimed for the higher levels of crime. Police seized £1.25m worth of drugs during the investigation, which led to Spackman’s downfall.
Spackman’s gang lost more than drugs. Police seized items worth hundreds of thousands, also £250,000 in cash. Police used new powers from the Proceeds of Crime Act, seizing items bought with crime money.
Police could not get back luxury holidays. Spackman went to Thailand and Dubai. He also rented an apartment in Malaga. Police stripped Spackman’s house. Campbell’s home lost gym equipment and designer clothes.
Spackman’s partner wore expensive jewelry. Police noticed her Cartier diamonds worth £10,000 and seized those too.
The gang appeared in court the next day. Spackman went from rich to wearing prison slippers, all very fast.
Detective Chief Inspector Steve Reardon led the probe. He said Spackman, Gannon, and Collins ran the group and lived the high life. But, crime did not pay in the end.
Judge David Aubrey KC sentenced the gang. He said they acted as a team, with different roles, but all were leaders in the network. Their goal was to sell drugs and make money.
The conspiracy was well planned, well prepared, and driven by greed, he added. They did not consider the impact on society.
Ian Spackman got 17 years and four months. He led the operation. He worried about being watched. He challenged people he thought were cops and delegated tasks to others to keep himself clean.
James Gannon got 22 years. He was below Spackman but a main figure. He ran business constantly; once, he spent £800 on a Paris weekend. He rented a Malaga apartment with Spackman. He helped plan the cannabis plot and played a key role in the Isle of Man job.
Tom Collins got 16 years. He was in the upper tier. He went to New York and Qatar. He bought a hydraulic press on eBay. Police extradited him from Spain.
Marc Campbell got 14 years. He worked in Liverpool and went on holidays, taking two trips to the Dominican Republic. Police broke into his home. He claimed he was set up.
Wayne Franklin got nine years. He went abroad for Christmas. Police found £80,000 in a bag when he was driving. Police then found cocaine and cash at his home.
Peter Mulvaney got 19 years. He set up P&M Plumbing. He rented the delivery unit. He signed for deliveries in a tie. He was in Menorca when police busted the delivery.
Paul Hornby got 13 years and four months. He helped smuggle cannabis into the Isle of Man. He managed supplies in Liverpool. He stocked up couriers and was in the “trusted inner circle”.
John Carey got 11 years and four months. He was the main courier to Blackpool. He made 84 trips there, sometimes going twice a day. He even went on Christmas Eve and Boxing Day.
Gary Unsworth got seven years and six months. He helped with cocaine and assisted with the Isle of Man plots. He linked Liverpool to contacts in Cumbria and Teeside.