Four members of one United Kingdom organized crime A gang including an 80-year-old man and his son have been jailed for almost 50 years following an investigation into a multi-million pound firearms and counterfeit drugs operation in Wigan, northern England, according to Greater Manchester Police.
The authorities described the process as an “industrial scale tablet manufacturing facility”.
It was led by John Eric Spiby, 80, who previously won £2.4 million (C$4.4 million) in a lottery draw in 2010. The four men involved were found guilty of, among other things, manufacturing and supplying counterfeit diazepam tablets, possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition and perverting the course of justice.
(Diazepam is an anti-anxiety medication used to calm the nervous system, relieve muscle spasms, treat seizures, and relieve alcohol withdrawal.)
Both Spiby and John Spiby Jr., 37, had denied the offenses but were found guilty after a trial in November 2025, Greater Manchester Police said.
Left: John Spiby; right, his son John Spiby, Jr.
Greater Manchester Police
Two other men, Callum Dorian, 35, and Lee Ryan Drury, 45, were also sentenced to 12 and nine years in prison respectively. Dorian was imprisoned in 2024.
Callum Dorian, left, and Lee Drury, right.
Great Manchester Police
The court heard that Spiby Sr “provided the premises and helped to adapt the premises and purchase thousands of pounds worth of machinery” to produce the drugs. reported the Guardian.
According to the media, Judge Clarke KC, who oversaw Spiby’s sentencing on Tuesday, told Spiby: “Despite your lottery win, you continued to lead a life of crime that extended beyond the normal period of your retirement.”
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Prosecutor Emma Clarke said the gang was involved in the production of counterfeit diazepam with an estimated street value of £288 million (CAD$424 million).
Police identified the facility as “a cottage behind Spiby Senior’s house” which was shown to contain “an industrial scale tablet manufacturing facility capable of producing tens of thousands of tablets per hour”.
The group rented a shipping container that stored millions of pills awaiting distribution. Spiby also owned an industrial plant, which he bought in 2021 with the intention of converting and expanding the group’s production capacity, police said.
Adam Kent KC, representing Spiby Sr., said Dorian was the “director of this operation.” He said that in Dorian’s words, the “guy whose gaff we’re using is a millionaire,” meaning Spiby Sr.
Some of the firearms found in Spiby’s home were from World War II, he noted.
Social media messages sent through encrypted platforms were attributed to Dorian, who used the pseudonym “Fallensoda,” police said.
“Messages and images associated with this username showed the brokering and delivery of firearms, including AK-47s, an Uzi, Tec-9, a Scorpion, a Grand Power pistol, silencers and ammunition,” investigators said.
In order to operate undetected, Drury created a fake company in August 2020 with a website advertising pill presses, blenders, packaging machines and powdered nutritional supplements.
“The sentences should serve as a clear warning: organized crime will not be tolerated,” Det. Insp. Alex Brown said in a statement.
“We will continue to pursue those who seek to profit from the harm and we will use all forces and resources at our disposal to disrupt and dismantle serious organized crime gangs.”
&Copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
