Dawn raid ends Salford gangster's Spain hideout

Rothwell was living in Barcelona when police stormed his apartment as part of an EncroChat linked operation.

Dawn raid in Barcelona ends Salford gangster's drug empire

Jamie Rothwell, 38, was hiding out in Barcelona when armed officers raided his apartment at dawn in a move tied to a broader crackdown on a criminal network. The operation leveraged evidence from EncroChat, the encrypted messaging service that European police say helped criminals coordinate drug deals and violence. In the UK, Rothwell pleaded guilty to multiple gun and drug offences and received a total 43-year sentence at Manchester Crown Court, with 18 years for drugs offences and a 25-year extended sentence for firearms. He had been extradited to the UK from the Netherlands in March 2021 after an arrest in Amsterdam linked to the EncroChat investigation.

Prosecutors described Rothwell as a leading figure in the Salford gang feud between 2014 and 2019, aligned with the Anti A-Team. He was said to have coordinated large cocaine shipments and firearms activity, with cocaine alone valued at about £7 million. The case ties Rothwell to a pattern of violence that included shootings and attempted hits as part of the feud, and his extradition followed a long legal process connected to the EncroChat investigations.

This case shows how organised crime now operates across borders, using encrypted tools and cross‑border cash flows. It underlines the value of international cooperation in policing, with EncroChat data helping to map networks even when suspects relocate to other countries. The long sentence signals the justice system’s stance on potent drug and weapon offences and serves as a warning to others who try to run criminal operations from abroad.

The episode also highlights the ongoing human cost of gang feuds and the importance of robust cross‑jurisdictional mechanisms like extradition. As policing adapts to digital crime, public trust depends on clear, careful reporting that avoids glamorising criminals while showing the real consequences of their actions.

Highlights

The fight against organised crime now travels as fast as the digital world allows.