Drugs baron ran business behind bars while partner in crime lived luxury lifestyle - seven people have been jailed
26.08.2022 - 10:53
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A convicted drugs baron ran an illicit business behind bars - while his partner in crime lived a luxury lifestyle. David Mulligan, 32, was serving 17 years at Her Majesty’s Pleasure when messages were uncovered between him and Remi Merriman, 35.
Over the course of a number of weeks, Merriman offered ‘wholesale’ amounts of cocaine and heroin to Mulligan, who was running his own separate drugs line from his prison cell using illegal mobile phones.
Following a GMP investigation - Operation Headland - into the supply of class A drugs in Tameside and across Greater Manchester, detectives arrested nine people. Officers searched a number of homes. Those searches uncovered drugs, cash and - at Merriman’s property - designer clothing, Rolex watches and high calibre bikes.
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Minshull Street Crown Court previously heard officers analysed Merriman’s iPhone 11, and uncovered a number of incriminating WhatsApp messages.
A ‘snapshot’ of the messages over a seven-week period revealed that Merriman organised the sale of 1.82 kilos of heroin worth between £72,000 and £109,000; and 2.33 kilos of cocaine worth between £116,000 and £166,000. Numerous messages between February 2 and March 18 2020 showed conversations between Merriman and customers, in which orders were made for ounce deals of cocaine and heroin.
Messages between Merriman and a man called Matthew Lister were recovered, in which Merriman supplied large amounts of class A drugs to Lister and asked him for payment. In other messages, Lister asked for ‘work’ from Merriman and later asked for ‘half a job’, which the court heard, means ‘half a kilo’ of drugs.
In messages between Merriman and