The promotional message was sent to 9,000 customers from a single “graft phone”
19:24, 09 Feb 2026Updated 20:35, 09 Feb 2026
The gang were jailed for a total of 63 years(Image: NCA)
Members of a 24/7 drugs supply gang who offered a special deal on cocaine to mark the release of a Premier League footballer’s kidnapped dad have been jailed for more than 63 years. The group sent a promotional message to more than 9,000 customers on their “graft phone” after the father of former Liverpool FC forward Luis Diaz was freed in November 2023, following 13 days in captivity by Colombian guerrillas.
In an attempt to boost sales, the message read: “3 for £75 for the next hour to celebrate Luis Diaz dad getting released in the Colombian jungle…”
Gang leader Paul Lockyer, 42, of Selworthy Road in Birkdale, and seven Merseyside-based accomplices were today, February 9, sentenced to a combined total of 63 years and eight months in prison at Liverpool Crown Court. The convictions followed an investigation by the Merseyside Organised Crime Partnership, involving the National Crime Agency and Merseyside Police.
Lockyer, known to associates as “the big fella”, ran the operation alongside his right-hand man James Neary, 57, of no fixed abode. Together they oversaw a network supplying two types of cocaine, high-purity “flake” and an adulterated “mix”, across Liverpool.
Members of the group worked in shifts to process and deliver hundreds of orders a day, storing drugs at multiple addresses throughout the city.
Police believe Lockyer used the profits to fund a luxury lifestyle, including designer jewellery and clothing, expensive cars and holidays aboard private yachts.
Unknown to Lockyer, investigators were closely monitoring the operation, observing meetings to collect drugs and the handover of the dedicated phone used to take orders around the clock.
Paul McArdle, 33, of Buckfast Close in Netherton, was a key operator of the graft phone and coordinated cocaine deliveries. Christopher Horrocks, 46, of Buckley Hill Lane in Sefton, and Stephen Lynch, 38, of Keene Court in Netherton, managed deals and re-stocking, with Horrocks also ensuring the phone was constantly topped up and active.
Michelle Higgins, 39, stored large amounts of cocaine at her home on Clock Tower Drive, Walton, where orders were prepared. Lee Nugent, 46, of Church Road, Waterloo, acted as a dealer, while his partner Julie McCafferty, 43, helped run the phone, prepare drugs and direct couriers.
On May 6 2025, officers executed warrants at multiple addresses and arrested all eight members. Lockyer and Neary were detained at Higgins’ home, where officers discovered the graft phone in the kitchen beside a one-kilogram block of cocaine and a large quantity of adulterant.
During the investigation, police seized 874 grams of cocaine with an estimated street value of £89,000, drug-mixing equipment and around £3,500 in cash believed to be proceeds of crime.
More than 9,000 customer contacts were found stored on the phone, along with thousands of messages advertising “delivery to your door”, special offers and discounts. In one AI-generated video, the group promoted a discount on ‘flake’ for Christmas.
A drugs expert giving evidence told the court he had “never encountered a drugs line as well run”.
It is estimated that between October 2023 and May 2025 the gang supplied at least 9.9 kilograms of cocaine, generating more than £620,000 in revenue.
Cocaine remains one of the UK’s most harmful drugs and is linked to thousands of deaths each year.
All eight criminals were sentenced today, February 9, having pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class A drugs on June 10, 2025.
Lockyer was sentenced to 11 years and four months in prison; Neary was jailed for nine years and nine months; McArdle was jailed for 10 years and one month.
Lynch was jailed for eight years; Nugent was sentenced to eight years in prison; McCafferty was sentenced to six years in prison; Horrocks was sentenced to six years in prison; and Higgins was jailed for four years and six months years.
NCA Senior Manager Jon Hughes of Merseyside OCP, said: “The group’s criminal enterprise was like a fast food delivery service for drugs, with cocaine rapidly dispatched to hundreds of people every day and promotions offered that would keep people coming back for more.
“The cocaine trade causes significant harm, including fuelling horrendous violence on our streets. Every order this group fulfilled, caused more harm to people and communities in Liverpool. It’s really significant that we have shut down Lockyer’s illicit business and ensured its members are now behind bars.”