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The drug trafficker discussed sourcing a ‘sprayer’ and ‘pump action shotties’ with his contacts
A drug and firearms trafficker who operated under the pseudonym “Ruthless Hawk” secretly plotted to supply £2.3million of heroin and cocaine. Jemal Estridge and his contacts discussed sourcing a “sprayer” and “pump action shotties” while involved in the sale of wholesale quantities of class A and B substances.
Police would later seize a stash of designer goods and Rolex watches from him when his crimes finally caught up with him five years down the line. A North Face bag containing more than £40,000 in cash was also discovered in his Ford Transit van at this stage.
Liverpool Crown Court heard today, Wednesday, that Estridge, of Ferndale Road in Waterloo, was able to “act at a high level” in the supply of drugs by utilising the handle “RuthlessHawk” on encrypted communications platform EncroChat. Messages recovered when the network was infiltrated by French police in 2020 showed him making reference to having “six tops”, or kilograms of cocaine, available in the Sheffield area at a price of £40,000 each.
Stephen McNally, prosecuting, described how Estridge also spoke of purchasing kilo blocks of the class A substance from Amsterdam for £29,000 a piece, as well as telling fellow service user “Level Ape” that he could purchase such quantities of heroin for £12,500 before selling them on for £20,000. Other conversations referenced the purchase of 40kg of MDMA, while the defendant was shown to have sold his product to the likes of “Wanted Soldier” and “Wild Gold”.
In April of that year, Estridge went on to arrange the transfer of £190,000 in cash to a contact in the Netherlands. He meanwhile discussed the possibility of buying a “slot van”, or a vehicle with a hidden compartment in order to stash contraband, which would be capable of secretly transporting up to 40kg of drugs at a time.
Assessed as playing a “leading role in a high level enterprise”, Estridge was evidenced to have used the application to “source” 44kg of heroin and 45kg of cocaine, drugs which would have been purchased for an estimated £1.74million and boasting a “potential resale value” of £2.33million. He was meanwhile found to have completed “confirmed sales” of 25kg of heroin and 14kg of cocaine, having been involved in discussions to supply 60 ounces of cannabis.
Further messages which were exchanged with “Million Percent” in March 2020 made reference to “pump action shotties”, which Estridge remarked were “dear” at prices of up to £10,000. The following month, the same contact then asked him whether he would be able to source Glock, CZ or Heckler and Kock branded firearms.
In a further conversation during April that year, Estridge and Level Ape discussed the sale of an automatic Glock pistol, referred to as a “sprayer”. He stated that this would be available for a fee of £10,000, which his contact said he would purchase alongside another criminal, who was referred to as “Jabber”.
Estridge was ultimately arrested on May 14 this year, when officers seized items of “high value” designer clothing and watches from his home. This included a haul of three Rolexes found in one bedroom alone.
A search of his Ford Transit van meanwhile revealed a North Face bag which contained a total of £42,000 in cash. His previous convictions include a sentence of six years in 2014 for conspiracy to supply class A drugs.
William England, defending, told the court: “In a nutshell, these offences were committed during the period of lockdown. The court is entitled to look at what has happened since the commission of these very serious offences.
“I accept there is a caveat, and that is the money laundering. Save for that matter, he has been working hard to remove himself from the types of people that he has been involved in.
“The business he was involved in, the building trade, stopped as soon as covid came. He did not see a way out. It was incredibly foolish. He has shown, since the commission of these serious offences, that he is capable of leading a law abiding life, capable of contributing to society and capable of working legitimately and supporting his family.
“There are a number of references, in particular from someone who he works with in the building trade, someone who runs the Caribbean centre and his long term partner. The person that they describe and the efforts he has made in the last five years are seemingly at odds with the person he was, and what he was up to, in 2020.”
Of the drugs and firearms, Mr England said: “The two activities appear to have been intertwined. We submit that they were all part of the desperate attempts by him to pay his bills. It is an explanation as to why on Earth he thought it sensible to start selling the types of things that we have heard about.
“While the money may have been sent, there does not appear to be evidence of the firearm being handed over. That is scant mitigation. I am trying to pluck positives from a difficult situation for the defendant, self inflicted, I hasten to add.
“Jemal Estridge has a side to his personality which is decent and family orientated. He can put these serious offences behind him. The contacts that he has made and the skillsets he has developed since the commission of these offences can only be to his credit.
“The fact that he has tried to make efforts and worked for the community since committing these offences is just one factor that the court must consider. This defendant, we submit, has proved that he is capable of rehabilitation and has a side to his character that is wholly inconsistent with the facts of these offences.”
Estridge admitted conspiracy to possess firearms for sale or transfer, conspiracy to supply heroin, cocaine and cannabis and possession of criminal property. Wearing a grey bodywarmer over a blue tracksuit, he was jailed for 18 years.
Sentencing, Judge Ian Harris said: “You are to be sentenced for very serious drugs and firearms offences. Clearly, that sentence of six years did little to deter you from getting involved in the current serious offences.
“It is widely understood that involvement, at any level, in the supply of class A drugs in the quantities identified here is an extremely serious offence. You have contributed to the degradation and human misery caused to those who take them, their wider families and the community. The crimes caused by drug usage involve acquisitive, as well as violent, often lethal, offences.
“The evidence in this case emanates from your use of an encrypted telephone that was thought to be impenetrable by the authorities. Messages showed negotiations and dealing in multiple kilograms of class A drugs and discussions of tens upon tens of thousands of pounds to fund your drugs enterprise.
“I do not accept that the drugs conspiracies were short lived. They would have continued, but for the disruption of the EncroChat system. Your drugs conspiracies were flourishing and established before the authorities managed to break the system.
“You set out firearms that you could obtain. An agreement was reached for the supply of a Glock machine pistol, a terrifying weapon in criminal hands.
“I have read the character references that have been supplied. They speak highly of you, but are qualified by the fact that you were involved, shortly before your arrest, in serious criminality. I accept that efforts had been made by you to work in a law abiding way.”
Of the firearms, Judge Harris added: “It was a dangerous sideline amidst your drug offending. This was an opportunity for you to make more money. At the time of all these conspiracies, you were steeped in criminality.”
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