Footage of drugs 'kingpin' Terence Earle being arrested in St Helens

Earle was arrested in March 2021 on Freckleton Road, West Park, by police investigating the criminal gang who were involved in trafficking and producing of large quantities of drugs.

Earle played a 'leading role'

Earle, 49, played a “leading role” in a Merseyside-based organised crime gang which plotted to supply cocaine in England and Scotland and produce amphetamine in a “secret laboratory” north of the border, Liverpool Crown Court heard.

Earle was sentenced on Tuesday for two counts of conspiracy to supply cocaine – one count relating to Scotland and the other to England and Wales – and conspiracy to produce amphetamines in Scotland.

The court heard that “much of the evidence against” Earle comes from “messages that were recovered by police on the EcroChat platform”.

During a trial of issue, Earle, of Freckleton Road, West Park, St Helens, had disputed supplying 11kg of cocaine and planning to supply six to eight more, accepting only being involved with the supply or transport of seven to eight kilograms.

Martin Reid, prosecuting, said to Earle communications showed him discussing the adulteration of 9kg of cocaine into 12kg, to which the defendant replied: "You're barking up the wrong tree, mate."

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Earle also compared his messages to a book which could be interpreted in different ways by different readers, adding: "In this book, I'm the author."

He also said he had facilitated supply of one kilogram of cocaine to a friend after bumping into an acquaintance “in the streets of Huyton”. He added: "You've got to remember, I'm in Huyton. You can get cocaine off anyone in Huyton."

He claimed he falsely promised to supply cocaine to “string along” a Scottish contact who he expected to produce amphetamine oil with a street value of more than £200,000 from chemicals Earle provided.

However, judge The Recorder of Liverpool Menary KC said Earle’s claim of getting cocaine from someone in the street “must be nonsense” and “rejected” his claims that he was “stringing” his contact along.

Prosecutor Mr Reid had told the court Earle and associates imported drugs into England from Europe and beyond.

Terence Earle, Stephen Singleton, Lee Baxter and Stephen King were sentenced on Tuesday (Image: NCA)

On March 23 2020, a quantity of alpha-phenylacetoacetamide – a chemical used in the production of amphetamine – was delivered to a property in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, Mr Reid said.

In December that year, a lorry which had been loaded from a warehouse at Reams Hill Caravan Park in Weeton, Lancashire, was stopped by police and 560kg of the chemical was found on board.

Mr Reid said the amount was enough to make a metric ton of amphetamine with a street value of more than £1million.

The facility in Scotland set up to produce amphetamine has not been found by authorities so it is not clear how much has been made, the court was told.

Terence Earle and Lee Baxter (Image: NCA)

Meanwhile, on April 14, 2020, the court was told one of the defendants Stephen Singleton supplied 500 litres of isopropyl alcohol, a component in the manufacture if amphetamine, and “accepts £4,000” payment.

A delivery driver “travelled to Costco in Haydock, where he met Stephen Singleton, 36, of York Road, Birkdale, who ran “a legitimate chemical supply company”.

The two men went between the two vehicles and loaded items from Singleton’s van to the Transit. The van arrived at a Motherwell safehouse that afternoon, with the same plastic containers being “unloaded”.

Defending Earle, Julian Nutter, said: "The beef of his business does appear to be in class B rather than the class A.

"It began from an endeavour to achieve things in the class B” and added to the judge he would “ask for perhaps what he (Earle) doesn't deserve, which is a degree of mercy."

Judge passes hefty sentence 

Terence Earle (Image: Merseyside Police)

Sentencing Earle to 16 and a half years in prison, judge Menary said that while “there was a dispute about the quantity of cocaine you were involved in, because these are conspiracy allegations in large measure it matters not in terms of sentencing.”

The judge remarked that the “tone” of the messages on EncroChat were “remarkably mundane” and said “despite the high stakes” for “you and the other conspirators” you “felt that your activities would never come to light or that you would be sentenced for these offences.”

Judge Menary added: “You were a senior figure in this conspiracy that involved the collection and distribution of multi-kilo quantities of cocaine. To do that, you must have had an established network of contacts.”

He added: "I am sure you were playing a leading role in this conspiracy. You were organising, buying and selling on a commercial scale.

"You had substantial links to others in the chain, with close connections to the original source. You must have had the expectation of substantial financial gain."

Liverpool Crown Court (Image: Stock)

Singleton, who was already serving nine years and two months for playing a leading role in a drugs conspiracy in the North East of England, was jailed for three years and five months.

Lee Baxter, 48, of Eldersfield Road, Norris Green, Liverpool, was given a sentence of one year and 10 months, suspended for 18 months, after pleading guilty to participating in the activities of an organised crime group in relation to the supply of class A drugs and production of class B drugs.

Stephen King, 49, of Garshake Terrace, Dumbarton, Lanarkshire, was given an 18-month sentence, suspended for 18 months, after being found guilty of participating in the activities of an organised crime group in relation to amphetamine.

Meanwhile, Stanley Feerick, 68, of Longreach Road, Dovecot, Liverpool, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply heroin and participating in the activities of an organised crime group. He will be sentenced at a later date.