A Glasgow man was among a notorious gang which ran a massive drug empire from a fortified home.
Christopher McKellar, 44, pleaded guilty along with Lee Docherty, 37, Ian Millar, 39, Brendan Gillan, 32, and his father Daniel Gillan, 60, to being involved in serious organised crime between March and December 2020.
The group have been given lengthy sentences for their involvement in the sale and supply of class-A drugs such as cocaine, heroin, cannabis and etizolam from a 'heavily fortified' property in the Larkfield estate in Greenock.
Following the court case, a senior detective in the investigation has welcomed the sentences.
Detective Chief Inspector Robert Bowie said: “These five men were a blight on the community of Greenock and the wider Inverclyde area.
“Their organised crime group was a significant factor in the trade of illegal drugs in the area, causing nothing but harm in pursuit of their own gain.
“Their activities were brought to light thanks to a protracted and complex investigation led by the Serious and Organised Crime Team working Renfrewshire and Inverclyde.
"The full extent of their criminality was uncovered thanks to the infiltration of the encrypted messaging service Encrochat.
“Our officers, working with partners, worked tirelessly to expose the criminal activity of this group, ultimately leading to them facing justice today.”
He added: “Disrupting the activities of organised crime groups and making the country an extremely hostile environment for them to operate is one of Police Scotland’s top priorities.
“There is no place for serious organised criminality in our society and, working in partnership with law enforcement agencies and the members of the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce, we will continue our fight against those involved in serious and organised crime to keep our communities safe.”
The court heard the group's activities were put to an end when French law enforcement intercepted encrypted messages on the EncroChat platform and passed them to Police Scotland.
These texts revealed the scale of their drug-trafficking activities, which ran into hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Docherty, described in court as the gang’s principal member, was jailed for eight years and Millar, his right-hand man and brother-in-law, was sentenced to six years.
(Daniel Gillan)
Daniel Gillan received six years and four months, and his son was imprisoned for six years.
McKellar was sentenced to five years and four months in jail.
The court also agreed to impose Serious Crime Prevention Orders on Docherty, Millar and Brendan Gillan.
(Brendan Gillan)
Following sentencing, Sineidin Corrins, deputy procurator fiscal for specialist casework at COPFS, said: “For years, the criminal activities of these individuals have impacted the everyday lives of many ordinary people in the Larkfield area of Greenock through their significant involvement in serious organised crime.
“They caused widespread disorder and disruption within the local community through the supply of drugs and their influence on young people.
“This extended to every facet of the community, from local people living in the area to those who ran shops or businesses.
“But now, thanks to the efforts of officers within Police Scotland and prosecutors at the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), their grip on the local community has been dismantled."
Docherty and his crew ran the drug-trafficking operation from a property in Oxford Road that was known variously as “the shop” or “the trap” and that each of the other accused answered to him.
An image shared by COPFS shows the property protected by a thick metal door.
Millar was responsible for the movement of controlled drugs between various locations.
The court was told that one text message centred on the purchase of Valium pills with a street value of more than £700,000.
Ms Corrins added: “The members of this community can now move forward safe in the knowledge that these five individuals will spend a lengthy time in prison having now been brought to justice for these crimes. There are consequences for this type of criminality.
“We hope these convictions and the sentence send a strong message to others involved in this kind of criminal behaviour and demonstrates the ability of police and prosecutors to investigate, prepare and prosecute serious and organised crime of this nature.
“We continue to target all those who threaten communities across Scotland, working as a key part of the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce to protect the people of Scotland.”
Judge Lord Mulholland told the gang they ran the narcotics empire 'like a supermarket'.
He said the money and drugs recovered - including £146,000 worth of narcotics and almost £13,000 in cash - showed "the extent of the drug trafficking operation".
All five individuals will be the subject of confiscation proceedings under proceeds of crime legislation.
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