Gangland figure jailed after Johnstone drugs factory raid

David Hough, from East Kilbride, was arrested in Spain

A man has been jailed after a major police operation cracked a drugs and gun gang in the west of Scotland.

David Hough, known as Murfy, was arrested after a raid on a street valium factory in Renfrewshire last June. The site in Johnstone was able to make 100,000 pills an hour.

Guns, ammunition and hand grenades were recovered in a separate raid on a "safe house" in Milton, Glasgow.

Hough was sentenced to six years in prison at the High Court in Paisley.

One of his accomplices, James Dalziel, was jailed for two years and three months.

Hough, 39, admitted last month to being involved in serious organised crime between April and June 2020.

The convicted cocaine dealer - who was brought back from Spain to face justice - was also given a three year Serious Crime Prevention Order.

These are designed to tackle and monitor criminals when they are freed.

• Drugs gang caught after police cracked encrypted phones

The swoop on the street valium factory was part of Police Scotland's Operation Gadget.

An earlier hearing in Glasgow heard the police operation was focused on Hough and his associates.

It was linked to the Europe-wide Operation Venetic - an investigation into the top secret Encrochat phone network used by criminals.

The court heard Hough was involved in the "business and marketing side" of the drugs lab with trusted lieutenant Hugh McHugh, 43, having a "hands on role".

James Dalziel was sentenced to more than two years in prison

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 lab was found on 10 June 2020 where the tablets were sold in varying quantities as street valium in areas such as Milton in Glasgow."

A total of 228,000 tablets were recovered with a potential value of £114,027. A machine found in the lab had the potential to make a further 118,000 tablets per hour.

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

'No comment'

The hearing was told two hand grenades, five slam guns, a revolver and more than 50 bullets were discovered at the house in Milton.

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 examined revealing a series of damning messages.

One text read: "Have you anywhere to put a toolbox with a few shotguns in it?"

There also included many photos of large quantities of drugs sent from McHugh.

Miss Dalziel said: "There was frequent daily communication between the parties with Hough issuing many of the instructions 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.

On 2 April 2020, a message revealed baby-sitting got in the way of McHugh's criminal activities.

He stated: "Mate, lab defo not happening tonight. She's causing it and I've got weans now. Lol."

Hough also sent a photo of firearms to McHugh.

McHugh admitted to the same charge as Hough and is due to be sentenced later this month.

Eric Morrison, 37, pled guilty to being concerned in the supply of etizolam. He will also learn his fate at a later hearing.

James Dalziel, 28, admitted to charges of being concerned in the supply of heroin and cocaine.

Det Supt David Scott of Greater Glasgow CID, said: "This investigation successfully targeted one of Scotland's top-tier organised crime groups. Disrupting the activities of these groups and making the country an extremely hostile environment for them to operate is one of Police Scotland's top priorities."

"No criminal is untouchable, even those who flee abroad to avoid justice.

"These men were responsible for bringing fear and misery to communities across Scotland and are now facing many years in prison, demonstrating the gravity of the crimes they were involved in."