Watnall man locked up for 15 years for being part of major drugs operation

Michael Sirrell, aged 37, of Chilton Drive, Watnall, was one of 18 men found guilty of being involved in the supply of class A drugs.

Sirrell acted as the middle man between high-level suppliers and one of the two drugs gangs – so-called ‘Kinsella’ and ‘Eastwood’ organised crime groups – involved.

The gangs were responsible for more than 10 kilograms of cocaine and heroin being supplied across Nottinghamshire over a seven-month period.

Between November 2019 and April 2020, the Nottingham-based Kinsella group bought cocaine in bulk from high-level suppliers based in the north and south of England, which they then sold to local drug dealers.

This included the Eastwood group, who sold this cocaine to users across Eastwood and the Broxtowe area, while also selling large quantities of heroin they had sourced from different corners of the country too.

The Kinsella group was led by Michael Kinsella and Jeffery Bradwell, while brothers Daniel, Lee and Dominic Wright, as well as Adam Rhodes, led the Eastwood group.

The two groups used an encrypted communications platform to coordinate their drug activity and communicate with other suppliers throughout this period.

An extensive police investigation was launched to dismantle the network and between January and May 2020, Rhodes, Dominic Wright, Nigel Sisson, Dale Wright, Ashley Hook, Lewis Kelly, Atif Shariff, Jamie Moore, Fred Carvalho, David Bowen and Wayne Shipman were all arrested in connection with the drugs operation.

Ultimately, police charged a total of 18 people in connection with the illicit drug activities.

Sirrell was one of five who denied the charges against him, along with Dominic Wright, Shariff, Hook and Sisson.

Following a lengthy trial at Nottingham Crown Court, all five were found guilty of conspiracy to supply class A drugs, while Hook was also convicted of conspiracy to transfer criminal property.

At Nottingham Crown Court, the 18 were jailed for a combined 166 years and one month, including 15 years for Sirrell.

Detective Inspector Mark Adas said: “These two organised crime groups worked together to become a major distribution arm of a drug dealing enterprise with reach across the country, sending tens of thousands of pounds-worth of harmful substances into communities across Nottinghamshire and beyond.

“They were dealing in substantial quantities of potent class A drugs and large sums of cash at any one time – a scale of criminality that often brings with it violence and misery for the communities in which they operate.

“By using an encrypted communications platform to coordinate their illicit activity, they thought they were going undetected, but when the EncroChat platform was taken down by law enforcement, the full scale of their offending was laid bare.

“This is only the first part of our action against these gangs.

"Next up, is seeking prosecution under the Proceeds of Crime Act, to ensure they do not benefit by a single penny from their crimes.”

Those also jailed:

Michael Kinsella, aged 36, of Mundella Road, The Meadows: jailed for 12 years and eight months;

Jeffery Bradwell, 35, of Wilfrid Grove, West Bridgford: jailed for 11 years and four months;

Daniel Wright, 36, of Princes Street, Eastwood: jailed for 11 years and four months;

Lee Wright, 39, of Moon Crescent, Eastwood: jailed for 11 years and four months;

Adam Rhodes, 34, of Cultivation Road, Eastwood: jailed for 10 years;

David Bowen, 51, of Merton, London: jailed for 10 years and eight months;

Fred Carvalho, 41, of London: jailed for five years and eight months;

Atif Shariff, 35, of Clapham, London: jailed for eight years and three months;

Ashley Hook, 40, of Braintree, Essex: jailed for 13 years;

Nigel Sisson, 35, of Meadow Court, Kilburn, Belper, Derbyshire: jailed for seven years;

Dominic Wright, 34, of Scargill Walk, Eastwood: jailed for 12 years;

Lewis Kelly, 30, of Willow Road, West Bridgford: jailed for eight years and eight months;

Jamie Moore, 32, of Holloway Close, East Bridgford: jailed for seven years;

Keilan Harrison, 22, of Hilltop Rise, Newthorpe: jailed for five years and eight months;

Wayne Shipman, 40, of Lovatt Drive, Langley Mill: jailed for six years;

Dale Wright, 42, Lynncroft, Eastwood: jailed for seven years and two months;

John Wells, 47, of Normandale Road, Liverpool: jailed for three years and four months.