Scottish drug lab boss jailed after Spain arrest

A senior member of an organised crime group that ran an amphetamine lab in Scotland has been jailed for 13 years.

Colin Wright, 38, fled to Murcia in Spain to avoid capture after his fellow gang members were caught in National Crime Agency (NCA) operation in March 2021.

Wright, formerly from Motherwell, was the leader of the group's Scottish arm and was actively involved in trafficking heroin and cocaine.

He is the final member of the gang to be jailed, with six others already in prison.

Wright worked alongside Terence Earle, 50, who was jailed for over 16 years and his cousin Stephen Earle, 52, who was sentenced for 11 years and four months in August.

He used the encrypted phone network EncroChat using the handle "Jack Nicklaus" to source drugs, assess supply routes and find customers.

The NCA investigation formed part of Operation Venetic, the UK-led response to the takedown of the EncroChat service in July 2020.

Wright pleaded guilty to five drug charges at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

He created an amphetamine lab in Motherwell in March 2020 during the first Covid lockdown. It was capable of producing 1,000kg of amphetamine.

He also helped ship at least 20kgs of cocaine and 10kg of heroin between Motherwell and Merseyside.

NCA Branch Commander Cat McHugh said: "Wright's case shows that criminals who seek refuge abroad are never immune from law enforcement's reach.

"His sentencing means that we have completely dismantled this organised crime group, who posed a grave danger to communities in Scotland and Merseyside, with the drugs they trafficked helping to fuel violence and exploitation."