Gang jailed over guns and drug operation worth up to £288m

Four members of an organised crime gang have been jailed after an investigation into a multi-million-pound firearms and drugs operation. 

The gang members have been jailed for a total of almost 50 years following an investigation into a Wigan-based "industrial‑scale tablet manufacturing set-up, capable of producing tens of thousands of tablets per hour".

The court heard how between November 2021 and May 2022, an investigation was launched following evidence from a separate operation which was tackling the use of encrypted communications platforms - particularly EncroChat - by organised crime.

The four members of the gang were John Eric Spiby, 80, his son John Colin Spiby, 37, Callum Dorian, 35, and Lee Ryan Drury, 45.

Messages and images linked to Dorian's handle on the platforms showed the facilitation and supply of firearms, including AK47s, a Grand Power pistol, silencers, and ammunition.

The messages also revealed the orchestration of the large scale production of counterfeit diazepam tablets containing etizolam.

After this, the group were placed under surveillance, with several properties being identified as being used for illegal activities.

The industrial-scale tablet manufacturing system was found in a cottage behind Spiby Sr's home.

An industrial unit was also bought by Spiby Sr with the aim of fitting it out to expand the group's production capacity.

A shipping container, rented by Drury and controlled by the group, was used to store materials and millions of the counterfeit tablets awaiting distribution.

In April 2022, a hire van that was seen by officers being loaded by Dorian and Drury was intercepted.

Authorities found 2.6 million counterfeit Diazepam tablets, with an estimated street value of between £1m and £5.2m.

To try and remain undetected, Drury created a fake company - complete with a website advertising tablet presses, mixers, packaging machines, and powdered supplements.

This allowed the group to run their "highly profitable criminal enterprise" while pretending to be a lawful business.

Following the seizure of the van, officers carried out a number of warrants - seizing three viable firearms, ammunition, cash, industrial tablet manufacturing machinery, and significant quantities of counterfeit tablets and raw materials.

The men were all arrested and remanded in custody.

Officers estimated that the group produced counterfeit tablets with a bulk value of between £7.2m and £12.9m, and a potential street value ranging from £57.6m to £288m.

Detective Inspector Alex Brown, from the Serious Organised Crime Group, said: "The volume of tablets we recovered - along with the sophisticated machinery - demonstrated how deeply embedded this group was in the illicit drug supply chain.

"Alongside the drug production, this group was also linked to the supply of a range of deadly firearms, including automatic weapons and ammunition.

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"This potentially deadly combination presented a serious threat to communities not just in Greater Manchester but across the country and beyond.

John Eric Spiby was jailed at Bolton Crown Court on Tuesday for 16 years and six months for conspiracy to produce and supply Class C drugs, two counts of possessing a firearm, possession of ammunition, and perverting the course of justice.

His son was sentenced to nine years in prison for conspiracy to produce and supply Class C drugs.

Both had denied the offences but were found guilty after a trial in November 2025.

Drury pleaded guilty midway through the trial to conspiracy to produce and supply Class C drugs and was jailed for nine years and nine months.

Dorian received a 12-year prison sentence in September 2024 for conspiracy to supply firearms and conspiracy to produce and supply Class C drugs.

DI Brown said: "The sentences should serve as a clear warning: organised crime will not be tolerated."