Drugs gang caught after police cracked encrypted phones

Police staged a series of raids across Scotland last year linked to Operation Venetic

Two members of a crime gang were caught after police cracked encrypted phones during a major drugs and firearms investigation.

David Hough was arrested after a raid on a street valium factory in Johnstone, Renfrewshire.

Guns and grenades were then seized during a separate raid at a "safe house" in Milton, Glasgow.

Hough's accomplice, Hugh McHugh, was arrested after experts hacked into encrypted devices.

Two other men also admitted drug offences and will be sentenced next month

The probe was linked to Operation Venetic, a Europe-wide probe which penetrated the top secret EncroChat phone network.

Drugs lab

The High Court in Glasgow heard Hough sent McHugh one text which read: "Have you anywhere to put a tool box with a few shotguns in it?"

Hough, 39, and McHugh, 43, admitted a charge of being involved in serious organised crime between April and June 2020.

The pair will be sentenced next month.

Hough, who was jailed for four years for cocaine dealing in 2005, was extradited from Spain last year to face justice.

The High Court in Glasgow heard he was involved in the "business and marketing side" of the drugs lab with McHugh having a "hands on role".

Guns, grenades and bullets

Prosecutor Lindsey Dalziel said: "The organised crime group's operation in Scotland consisted of the storage and adulteration of class A drugs and the production of etizolam tablets for onward supply.

"They used commercial and industrial premises and vehicles as well as some residential home addresses to store drugs, adulterants, firearms and money."

The court heard the lab was discovered on 10 June last year and a total of 228,000 tablets were recovered with a potential value of £114,027.

The machine had the capability of producing 118,000 tablets per hour.

The padlocked premises in Rannoch Road, Johnstone, was next to the home of associate Eric Morrison, who was also convicted.

Meanwhile, the court heard two hand grenades, five homemade "slam" guns, a revolver and more than 50 bullets were discovered at the house in Milton.

DNA evidence

A total of £27,650 of cocaine - some with a purity of 78% - was also found there.

Detectives went on to find encrypted phones at the homes of Hough, of East Kilbride, and McHugh, who lived in Milton.

Hough told officers: "I'm not giving any password or pin code. No comment."

But the devices were forensically examined revealing a series of damning messages.

As well as the "shotguns" text sent by Hough police also recovered many photos of "significant quantities" of drugs sent from McHugh.

Miss Dalziel: "There was frequent daily communication between the parties with Hough issuing many of the instruction relating to a wide variety of tasks.

"More than 50 messages a day were exchanged at times."

Cocaine was also referred to using designer names such as Gucci, and Hough also sent a photo of firearms to McHugh.

Morrison, 37, admitted being concerned in the supply of etizolam after his DNA was found on drug-related equipment at the lab.

A fourth man, 28 year-old James Dalziel, admitted to charges of being concerned in the supply of heroin and cocaine after a raid at another flat in Milton.

Dalziel was remanded while Morrison's bail was continued ahead of sentencing next month.