Gangster “despicable thuggery” who terrorized the town and relief is now behind bars

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The residents are relieved that the notorious gang leader is no longer in their town.

Leon Cullen was sentenced to 22-and-a-half years in prison earlier this year after pleading guilty to running a drug and arms ring in Warrington.

Colin was a well-known drug dealer who became involved with more established criminal gangs from Salford and Liverpool.

Read more: Warning message sparked terror in the criminal underworld

However, Colin is later involved in a major feud with the notorious Salford man which leads to a series of serious accidents.

Colin was later arrested in Dubai during an international police operation, and eventually deported to the United Kingdom.

He later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply firearms, conspiracy to possess ammunition, and conspiracy to supply cocaine.

Now a woman from Warrington who knew Colin has spoken to ECHO.

The mother, who asked not to be named, said: “Warrington got rid of Leon and his cohorts very well. He was a vile bully and he has terrorized a lot of people over the years.

“There is no sympathy for him and we are very happy that it will be a long time before he is able to return to the city.”

Twin brothers Leon and Anthony Cullen grew up in the area of ​​Longford, which has become a stronghold of the crime syndicate. Both were jailed on drug charges in 2012.

Driving a Maserati sports car, Leon was known to be more fickle than his brother Anthony.

Leon used a false passport to flee the country as the police moved to crack down on the Colleen gang, which was centered on the supply of first-class drugs.

Veteran detectives are shocked to discover that the gang has access to a fully functional AK47 assault rifle.

Anthony Cullen was sentenced to 27 years in prison for a series of drug and firearm offenses.

Leon was able to move to Dubai and later photos surfaced showing him wearing elegant clothes and expensive jewelry.

While on the run, Cullen became embroiled in a major feud with criminals from Salford which led to a wave of violence across the Northwest.

He hired powerful criminals from Salford armed to search for accomplices of Leon Cullen in the area of ​​Warrington.

Some of the criminals involved have been linked to the murder of notorious underworld figure Paul Massey, who died in a machine gun attack outside his home.

Paul Massey was killed outside his home by Mark Fellowes in July 2015 (Image: Manchester Evening News)

The violence began in January 2019 when gunmen opened fire on an aide to the Colin family outside a home on Monks Place.

Their target, a former boxer, was unharmed but was left severely shaken.

On February 25, a car was set on fire twice in one night near a pub on Bewsey Road. Then, on April 15, an explosive device was left in a front lawn on Burtils Road in the Orford area.

Bomb squad was called and detonated a controlled explosive device. Police said the targeted incident was linked to serious organized crime.

David Barnes, father of Colin’s classmate Liam Byrne Jr.’s father, was shot in the leg by a gunman disguised as a pizza delivery boy on the evening of April 24, 2020.

The wave of violence created a feeling of unease in the city. A woman who claimed to be a relative of Leon Colin called ECHO last year and said her family was afraid of “every knock on the door”.

The woman said the criminals from Salford were bent on revenge and wanted “blood, not money”.

She said Leon Cullen’s associates were attacked “within the prison system” as part of the conflict.

It later emerged that the notorious individuals from Salford had been communicating with Liverpool’s drug director, Alan Tobin, on the encrypted network EncroChat about targeting Leon Cullen’s associates.

Liverpool’s men Aaron Bretherton, Anthony Morris and a third man carried out the shooting of David Barnes on behalf of the crime bosses.

Bretherton was the gunman, Morris the driver and the third man the “fixer”. It cannot be named for legal reasons.

In the lead-up to the incident, the well-known Salford man sent letters to Alan Tobin that read, “I’ll do it all soon.”

Alan Tobin replies, “I’ll do that today.”

Alan Tobin agreed to identify the homes of Byrne and his father. Salford gang boss offered £10,000 to anyone willing to shoot.

Earlier this month, the Liverpool Crown Court heard that Alan’s brother, John Tobin, had already identified the source of the address, which he then gave to his brother Alan.

Alan Tobin was sentenced to eight years in prison for conspiracy to intentionally cause GBH and John was handed two and a half years in prison for his participation in the activities of an organized criminal group. Both sentences were back-to-back – which means they were added to the important drug sentences issued to both of them earlier this year.

Morris, 24, was sentenced to 14 years in prison for conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and concern about supplying cocaine.

Bretherton, of Netherfield Road South, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for conspiracy to intentionally cause GBH, intentionally causing grievous bodily harm; Possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life; Conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life, and conspiracy to possess ammunition with intent to endanger life and a drug crime.

The courts also heard how Leon Cullen used his private network of criminal associates to orchestrate the shooting.

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Colin the Ripper used Warrington to hire Sean O’Malley to organize a shooting in Hilden Street, Bolton, Greater Manchester.

Attorney General Andrew Scott told Bolton Crown Court that O’Malley orchestrated the shooting of Colin, which was linked to a “protracted dispute between an organized criminal group.”

Sean O’Malley, 33, of Weathers Street, Warrington

O’Malley later left the UK for Dubai, and investigators suspected that he had spent time there with Leon Cullen.

O’Malley was imprisoned for 18 years earlier this year after pleading guilty to false imprisonment, intentionally causing grievous bodily harm, conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

Greater Manchester Police have informed the United Nations Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO) that Leon Cullen will not face charges in connection with the Hilden Street shooting.

Speaking earlier this year, a senior Cheshire Police detective said the Cullen twins had brought “fear” to the streets of Warrington.

Detective Rob Balfour, of the Cheshire Constabulary’s Serious and Organized Crime Unit said: “Leon Cullen and his twin brother Anthony were involved in serious and organized crime centered on profiting from the supply of several kilograms of cocaine as well as the possession and employment of a range of viable firearms with ammunition.

“Their criminal enterprise brought with it acts of violence that included threats, intimidation and fear in the Warrington community.

“When detectives started getting closer to their criminality, they both made the decision to flee the country. Anthony was caught by the police before he could escape, but Leon was on the run for two years.

He thought he could get away with justice but we made sure that would never happen. The hard work and determination to pursue him and bring him back to the UK paid off.”

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