A case so big it was illegal to report on it until the trials finished.
Today, at Manchester Crown Court, reporting restrictions were lifted upon verdicts in the second trial, and news of the NCA’s operation can be released.

Six seizures of drugs with a total street value of £40m were made from the OCG, which was based in north west England with accomplices in the Netherlands, between the indictment period of August 2015 and September 2018.

But NCA investigators proved there were at least 240 importations by the OCG, which went to great lengths to confuse the authorities and avoid justice.

Trial judge Paul Lawton said if only half of the importations contained the same quantities of drugs as the six recovered seizures, it would amount to £3billion worth.

The OCG was led by Paul Green, 59, (pictured above) who was jailed for 32 years.

It set up a series of front companies and warehouses in England and the Netherlands to mask offending.

And to avoid detection, the OCG concealed its drugs in consignments of strong-smelling foodstuffs such as onions, garlic and ginger. The crime group bought so many onions – between 40 tonnes and 50 tonnes a week, that it couldn’t get rid of them and often sent them back to the continent to act as another cover load.

“The stench of criminality is overpowering,” prosecuting KC Andrew Thomas told the jury as has he opened the case.

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