Curtis Warren admits breaching serious crime order

Curtis Warren admitted six charges of failing to comply with a serious crime prevention order

Convicted gangster Curtis Warren wants "peace" and to be out of the "public glare", a court has heard.

The claim came as the 61-year-old was being sentenced for breaching an order meant to prevent him from committing serious crime.

Appearing at Liverpool Crown Court, he pleaded guilty to six charges of failing to comply with a serious crime prevention order.

He admitted a further charge, which he asked to be taken into account when he was being sentenced.

Recorder of Liverpool Andrew Menary KC handed him a 14-month jail term, suspended for 18 months.

Warren, who has previously been convicted in the Netherlands and Jersey for drugs offences, had been due to stand trial charged with 18 breaches of the order, but changed his pleas to six of the counts.

Paul Mitchell, prosecuting, asked the court to lie the remaining counts on file.

Anthony Barraclough, defending Warren, said: "He doesn't want to be in the public glare any more, he wants peace and an end to it."

'Regular breaches'

Mr Mitchell said there had been "regular breaches" of the serious crime prevention order, which was imposed in 2013 but came into effect on 21 November 2022 when Warren was released from prison.

The court heard that the requirements included that Warren can only own one mobile phone, but Mr Mitchell said there was "substantial evidence" of him using other handsets.

When originally arrested on suspicion of breaching the order in July last year Warren handed over an iPhone 14 which was not declared to the National Crime Agency (NCA), the court heard.

Warren also breached requirements related to his finances by using a bank card in the name of John Harrison to pay for car insurance and for a speeding fine issued by Greater Manchester Police, as well as by opening bank accounts without notifying the NCA.

When he was arrested, £1,000 was found in a brown envelope in his kitchen, Mr Mitchell said.

Other requirements which were breached included using vehicles without telling the NCA and going abroad, to Alicante in Spain, without giving seven days' notice to the agency.

The court heard he was registered as a named driver for an Audi TT and a Range Rover.

He also failed to notify the authority that he was living at a flat in Birkenhead.

Curtis Warren appeared at Liverpool Crown Court

Judge Menary said because there was no evidence Warren was actively involved in criminal activity and because it was the first time he was being prosecuted for the breaches, he was willing to suspend the prison term.

Warren was warned if he commits further offences, including further breaches of the order, he will have to serve the full sentence.

The court heard Warren has 31 previous convictions for 70 offences.

The former nightclub bouncer appeared on the Sunday Times Rich List in 1997 when he was listed as a property developer worth £40m, but disappeared from the list the following year after he was jailed for drug dealing in the Netherlands.

Head of the NCA’s Prisons and Lifetime Management Unit Alison Abbott said Warren treated his order "with contempt, breaching it within days of his release from prison, and going on to breach it multiple times".

"Serious Crime Prevention Orders are a powerful tool to help prevent those convicted of serious offences continue their criminality when they come out of prison," she said.

"This case should serve as a warning to others.

"As we did with Warren, we will actively monitor all those who are subject to such orders, and they will stay on our radar even after they are released from jail."