Craig McKenzie, 41, conspired to supply heroin, cocaine and cannabis from the Netherlands, Spain and North America. He was a well-known offender in the North West of England.
Craig McKenzie, 41 ans, a ĆuvrĂ© pour fournir de l’hĂ©roĂŻne, de la cocaĂŻne et du cannabis en provenance des Pays-Bas, d’Espagne et d’AmĂ©rique du Nord. C’Ă©tait un narco bien connu dans le nord-ouest de l’Angleterre.
McKenzie faisait appel à des courtiers pour livrer ses clients basés principalement à Liverpool et Manchester, mais aussi au Pays de Galles et à Londres.
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Operation Venetic: âTeflonâ drugs boss with ÂŁ250k watch is jailed for 20 years
A drugs boss who had a ÂŁ250,000 watch has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after a National Crime Agency investigation.
McKenzie, of Hatchmere Close, Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester, used runners to move his drugs to customers who were mainly based in Liverpool and Manchester but were also as far afield as Wales and London.
Evidence suggested he sent money from his drugs sales to notorious offenders in Spain and the United Arab Emirates through money laundering channels.
McKenzie, who was jailed today (Mon 23 Oct) at Manchester Crown Court after being convicted by a jury, enjoyed a flashy lifestyle which to outward appearances he had earned through his property business âTeflon Holdingsâ.
Despite only have a declared income of around ÂŁ33,000 in 2021, he wore the ÂŁ250,000 Richard Mille RM11-03 rose gold titanium watch, drove a brand new BMW X5 and a VW Tiguan R-Line. When NCA officers raided his house they also found ÂŁ128,000 worth of designer goods and clothing and ÂŁ33,000 in cash.
Proceeds of Crimes Act proceedings have begun against him and ÂŁ1.5m of assets have been restrained.
McKenzie was arrested in February 2022 by NCA officers investigating high-end drug dealing conducted through the EncroChat encrypted communications platform.
The EncroChat platform was taken down in 2020 and Operation Venetic, the UK law enforcement response led by the NCA was launched.
Investigators waded through 11,043 messages between McKenzieâs âManlydesertâ handle and his conspirators going from March 2020 to June 2020.
They showed that McKenzie â who was acquitted of murder in December 2011 â had established close ties with prolific, wanted, international criminals and these relationships bought him access to other criminal conspiracies unfolding in the UK and overseas.
McKenzie was convicted of conspiring to supply 45kg of cocaine and 14kg of heroin with a joint street value of ÂŁ5m, and 90kg of cannabis with a street value of ÂŁ900,000.
During the three-month period in 2020, McKenzie also laundered approximately ÂŁ400,000.
He has 18 separate convictions from 26 offences starting in 1996 when he was convicted of robbery at age 13.
He was accused of murdering Amran Khan, aged 29, over a heroin debt in 2009 but was cleared after telling the jury he had nothing to do with drugs and was a car dealer. Two co-accused were convicted of the murder.
Dean Wallbank, NCA senior investigating officer, said: âCraig McKenzie was under the belief that he was untouchable and was arrogant to the point that he called one of his cover businesses Teflon Holdings as he believed that none of his crimes would stick to him.
âMy officers built an overwhelming case that showed McKenzie was a commercial-scale drugs boss who had international criminal contacts and who used his business as cover.
âOperation Venetic is the UKâs deepest and broadest penetration of serious and organised crime ever and has led to the convictions of offenders like McKenzie who had previously gone under the radar.
âThe NCA will continue to do all we can at home and abroad to tackle criminals who supply Class A drugs and bring huge harm to our communities.â
23 October 2023
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Et dans NARCODIARIO
Un capo de la droga que tenĂa un reloj de 250.000 libras esterlinas ha sido condenado a 20 años de prisiĂłn tras una investigaciĂłn de la Agencia Nacional contra el Crimen (NCA, por sus siglas en inglĂ©s) propiciada por la desencriptaciĂłn de la aplicaciĂłn Encrochat.
Craig McKenzie, de 41 años, conspirĂł para suministrar heroĂna, cocaĂna y cannabis desde Holanda, España y AmĂ©rica del Norte. Era un delincuente muy conocido en el noroeste de Inglaterra. McKenzie utilizaba corredores para llevar sus drogas a clientes que tenĂan su base principalmente en Liverpool y Manchester, pero que tambiĂ©n se encontraban en lugares tan lejanos como Gales y Londres.
La evidencia tambiĂ©n sugiere que enviĂł dinero de sus ventas de drogas a delincuentes notorios en España y los Emiratos Ărabes Unidos a travĂ©s de canales de lavado de dinero.
McKenzie, que fue encarcelado este lunes, 23 de octubre, en el Tribunal de la Corona de Manchester, despuĂ©s de ser declarado culpable por un jurado, disfrutaba de un estilo de vida llamativo que, segĂșn las apariencias, se habĂa ganado a travĂ©s de su negocio inmobiliario âTeflon Holdingsâ.
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