A drugs gang who posed as police officers to raid rival cannabis farms has been jailed for more than 30 years.
The so-called ‘Ozone’ crime group, based in Blackpool, Lancashire, ran a warehouse with rooms dedicated to producing multiple types of illegal substances.
Ring members advertised drugs on Telegram before arranging sales via WhatsApp, and even dressed as officers to burgle competitors.
Photos found on seized phones showed one gang member, Mark Kirkwood, posing in a uniform from a force outside the area, while another man, Cole Muir, was pictured wearing a police-style high-vis jacket.
An investigation began in March 2024 after three group members, including Kirkwood, turned up at a home in Poulton-le-Fylde.
Acting on the instructions of gang leader Joshua Shaw, the trio wore face coverings and gloves and were armed with weapons, including a machete-type knife and a baseball bat.
They stormed into the property and threatened to firebomb the home unless they were told ‘where the weed was’.
An investigation began in March 2024 after three group members, including Mark Kirkwood (pictured), turned up at a home in Poulton-le-Fyle
Cole Muir (pictured), 27, of Bela Grove, Blackpool, was jailed for 42 weeks
Photos found on seized phones showed Cole Muir wearing a police-style high-vis jacket
A woman in the house, whose children were upstairs at the time, was told she had 20 minutes to hand over the drugs.
Police later discovered an empty cardboard box in the front garden containing polystyrene and empty vacuum-packed plastic bags.
Inside the box was an invoice addressed to a different woman in Blackpool from a man in the United States. The invoice described the contents as a coffee table and stools.
Officers also located a tracking device.
Enquiries revealed the parcel had been disposed of as a favour to a friend.
On August 21, 2024, police raided a property uncovering what they described as an ‘Amazon-style’ drugs warehouse.
Rooms dedicated to storing, producing, packaging and preparing multiple types of cannabis were discovered.
Officers found large quantities of harvested cannabis in different strains.
They also found vacuum-packed wholesale bags, street-level snap bags, scales and other drug equipment.
Analysis of seized phones revealed delivery routes, customer addresses and images of cannabis growth.
Police also discovered evidence of communication between Shaw, Kirkwood and other members of the drug line.
After being charged, Kirkwood was remanded to HMP Liverpool.
During a search of his prison cell, a mobile phone hidden in a window vent was discovered.
Although Kirkwood denied knowledge of the device, information on the phone linked him to further criminal activity.
Ten people were arrested and charged in connection with the operation and have now been sentenced.
Joshua Shaw, 33, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply and import cannabis and was found guilty of blackmail. He was jailed for 15 years.
On August 21, 2024, police raided a property uncovering what they described as an ‘Amazon-style’ drugs warehouse
Rooms dedicated to storing, producing, packaging and preparing multiple types of cannabis were discovered and officers found large quantities of harvested cannabis in different strains
Joshua Shaw (pictured), 33, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply and import cannabis and was found guilty of blackmail. He was jailed for 15 years
Albert Marashi, 30, of Cleveleys Avenue, Thornton, was jailed for four years
Mark Kirkwood, 29, of Gynn Avenue, Blackpool, was found guilty of assisting an organised crime group and blackmail, and admitted further drug and burglary conspiracies. He was jailed for eight years and six months.
Albert Marashi, 30, of Cleveleys Avenue, Thornton, was jailed for four years.
David Everton, 33, of Ludlow Grove, was jailed for three years.
Cole Muir, 27, of Bela Grove, Blackpool, was jailed for 42 weeks.
Joseph Adams, 34, of Sherbourne, was sentenced to 66 weeks suspended for 12 months with 120 hours unpaid work.
John Card-Mina, 41, of Cannon Hill, Ashton-on-Ribble, was sentenced to 17 months suspended for 12 months.
Craig Quinn, 50, of Harcourt Road, Blackpool, was sentenced to 15 months suspended for 18 months with 120 hours unpaid work.
Joseph Oakley, 33, of Belmont Avenue, was sentenced to 15 months suspended for 18 months with 120 hours unpaid work.
Detective Sergeant Ant Alves said: ‘Shaw and Kirkwood thought that it was ok to threaten a woman and her children when their cannabis deliveries didn’t go to plan.
‘They ran a sophisticated set up to prepare and sell their drugs to some of the most vulnerable in Blackpool and the Fylde Coast.’