Dramatic footage shows the moment armed Spanish police stormed Jamie Rothwell's Barcelona apartment in a dawn raid, bringing down the Salford gangster's international criminal empire. Rothwell, 38, had been hiding out in Spain while continuing his criminal operations through his EncroChat phone under the username 'live-long'.
The criminal mastermind received a massive 43-year sentence at Manchester Crown Court. Judge John Potter imposed 18 years for drug offences and a consecutive 25-year extended sentence for firearms offences, comprising 21 years in prison plus four years on licence.
EncroChat surveillance exposed £7 million operation
European law enforcement had infiltrated the encrypted EncroChat communication system, uncovering Rothwell's wide-ranging underworld activities. The investigation revealed he had orchestrated deals involving over 200 kilograms of cocaine worth £7 million and five kilograms of ketamine.
Judge John Potter told him: "Mr Rothwell, you have lived much of your life as a professional criminal involved in serious organised crime. The offences you fall to be sentenced for graphically illustrate your willingness to follow this path and cause loss and misery to others as you do so. You issued orders to others and you expected them to be obeyed. I heard evidence from your co-accused that they feared you. You obtained wealth by having access to millions of pounds of cash."
Leading figure in deadly gang feud
Rothwell was a prominent member of the Anti A-Team gang, serving as right-hand man to alleged leader Michael Carroll. The group was locked in a violent feud with the rival A-Team between 2014 and 2019, a conflict that claimed multiple lives.
Gangster Paul Massey was shot dead outside his home in Salford in July 2015 by Mark Fellows, an Anti A-Team associate nicknamed The Iceman. Months later in October, seven-year-old Christian Hickey was shot at his doorstep as the A-Team sought revenge in a botched hit, thought to have been targeting the schoolboy's father.
International manhunt and capture
Rothwell survived a shooting at a car wash in Ashton-in-Makerfield in March 2015 as part of the gang warfare. He was later acquitted of conspiracy to murder charges in 2020 but fled the country after the trial.
He was arrested in Amsterdam in December 2020 following a European Arrest Warrant. Rothwell was extradited back to the UK in March 2021, having pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges including firearms possession with intent to endanger life, ammunition possession, cocaine supply, ketamine supply, and causing grievous bodily harm.
Sources used: "PA Media", "Manchester Evening News", "Daily Record" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
