Thomas Kavanagh, a senior leader of the Kinahan crime syndicate, was reportedly the mastermind behind a plot to stockpile a collection of firearms in an endeavour to secure a lenient prison sentence, the court was informed. The Dublin-born Kavanagh, aged 57, strategized that by directing the British National Crime Agency to a hidden trove of 11 firearms, he could possibly sway his sentence in a multi-million pound drug trafficking case.
Kavanagh sought the assistance of his brother-in-law, Liam Byrne, and fellow accomplice Shaun Kent to outfox the NCA. In May 2021, a field in Newry in Northern Ireland was surveyed by the NCA based on information provided by Kavanagh, where they dug up two bags brimmed with weaponry, which included seven submachine guns, three semi-automatic pistols, an attack rifle and multiple rounds of ammunition.
The scheme, however, was thwarted by the NCA after they came across damning messages on an encrypted programme, EncroChat, unlocked by their French colleagues. Before their trial at the Old Bailey was set to commence, Kavanagh, Byrne, and Kent confessed to the conspiracy the previous month.
On Monday, the convicts were brought back to court for the start of their two-day sentencing session under increased security measures. Tom Forster KC, the prosecutor, emphasised that the case featured “serious organised crime”. He informed the court that if the NCA hadn’t found the EncroChat evidence, the plot would likely have succeeded.
Between January 2020 and June 2021, the culprits agreed to “gather as many weapons as feasible” from the UK, Holland, Ireland, and Northern Ireland. From HMP Dovegate, where he was serving a three-year prison sentence for owning a stun gun and had been held in custody on significant drug offenses since March 2020, Kavanagh supervised the conspiracy. The drug-related charges pertained to smuggling substantial quantities of cocaine and marijuana into the UK, for which he was sentenced to a 21-year jail term in March 2022.
In summarising the case, Mr Forster stated: “Essentially, the scheme concocted by Thomas Kavanagh, which the other culprits agreed with and implemented, was to amass as many guns and bullets as possible from a range of criminals, hide them, and then disclose their location to the NCA.”
The co-conspirators aimed to trick the authorities by claiming their assistance in recovering dangerous weapons was sincere, in a bid for Thomas Kavanagh to receive a significant reduction in his sentence. However, in reality, Kavanagh and his accomplices did not intend to provide any genuine help as they had planned the acquisition of the weapons and ammo through their own criminal activities. This scheme was a ‘set up’, said Mr Forster.
The scheme was unravelled via encrypted communication on EncroChat, colloquially referred to as the “WhatsApp for criminals”. Although Kavanagh did not directly use EncroChat, other co-conspirators used nicknames to refer to him, such as “Pops”, “Mick”, “Big Head”, “Malla” or “our mate”, according to court records.
Their confidence in their anonymity was shattered when French authorities successfully decrypted the platform in 2020, harvested the data and cooperated with British law enforcement. The NCA’s comprehensive investigation unveiled the identities of the co-conspirators from three months’ worth of messages.
Kent reportedly had several roles, acting as the “messenger boy” to communicate instructions from Kavanagh to others responsible for purchasing the guns and ammunition, through an intermediary in prison, using his EncroChat device.
Byrne, closely associated with Kavanagh and also his brother-in-law, followed Kavanagh’s orders to secure firearms and ammunition and provided “critical momentum” towards advancing the plot. Both lived in close proximity in Tamworth, Staffordshire.
Kavanagh, Byrne (44, from Dublin), and Kent (38, from Liverpool), have conceded two counts of conspiring to have a banned weapon, and two counts of conspiring to possess illegal ammunition, between January 9th, 2020, and June 3rd, 2021. Kavanagh and Kent also acknowledged conspiring with others to obstruct justice. Judge Philip Katz is set to announce the sentences on Tuesday. – PA.