Gang jailed after holding 'secret meeting' over gun plot

A gang of organised criminals have been jailed after holding a secret meeting for the sale and purchase of an illegally modified Turkish pistol. Gangster Connor Nixon, 27, purchased the blank firing self-loading pistol, which had been modified to fire live ammunition, at a planned meeting in Liverpool on May 21 this year.

His friend Thomas Ambrose, 30, had organised the sale of the firearm from brothers Thomas Collins, 30, and Alan Gray, 36, and the deadly weapon was picked up by courier Christopher James in a secret meeting at around 1pm.

The group was observed by police acting on intelligence. Ambrose drove Nixon and James from Wirral to Liverpool, where they met with Collins and Gray on a footpath near Rosedale Close, Walton.

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Collins put on gloves before handing the pistol to Nixon, who "appeared proficient in the use of such a weapon". He then put the pistol in James' man bag, and gave a bag of cash to Gray in return.

James left the scene in a taxi, which was surrounded by armed police officers on Walton Lane at around 1.15pm. The ECHO previously reported that the tyres of the vehicles were shot out during the incident, which occurred near to Goodison Park. The firearm was seized along with 11 rounds of 9mm ammunition, and James was arrested.

Nixon, Ambrose, Collins and Gray all stopped using their phones in the days following the incident. They were arrested on August 28, when Collins told police he believed he was handing over a BB gun, and was described as "irate and aggressive" during an interview.

James, of Collin Road, Bidston, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court last month, where he was jailed for five years. The other four men appeared today, November 8, on a litany of illegal weapons charges.

Connor Nixon, of Farmfield Drive, in Beechwood, pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, and possession of a firearm while prohibited. Thomas Ambrose, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply a firearm.

Thomas Collins, of Robson Street, Everton, pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, conspiracy to supply a firearm, and possession of a firearm while prohibited for life due to a previous conviction.

Alan Gray, of Cassia Close, in Walton, pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, conspiracy to supply a firearm, and possession of a firearm while prohibited. He also pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply a class A drug after police searched his property and found 21 bags of cocaine at 84% purity, worth up to £1,450.

The court heard all four men had lengthy criminal pasts. Ambrose had 18 past covncitons for 32 offences inclduing possession with intent to supply class B drugs and assault.

Judge Katherine Pierpoint said: "I'm told as a child you spent time in care and had a difficult background, and having been placed in supportive accommodation aged 17 you fell in with a bad crowd. I note you are now a 30-year-old adult."

Collins had 11 convictions for 17 offences including possession of a double-barrel sawn-off shotgun and possession with intent to supply class A drugs. The judge said: "You appreciate you have an appalling record. You accept you need to turn your life around."

Gray had seven past convictions for 27 offences including robbery, possession with intent to supply class A drugs, conspiracy to supply class A drugs, threats to kill, and blackmail. Nixon, a known organised crime gang member, had six past convictions for nine offences including assault.

Nixon was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison; Ambrose was sentenced to six years, Collins was sentenced to seven years and four months, and Gray was sentenced to a total of 10 years and eight months. After Gray's sentence was announced, a female member of the busy public gallery shouted "10 years!" and ran out of the courtroom crying.