UPDATE: |’Stupid’ drug trafficker who posed with shotgun found with cocaine in his underwear News

Joshua Caldwell was identified due to his ‘distinctive’ eyebrows

A ‘stupid’ drug trafficker who posed with a shotgun and used ammunition to spell out his initials, has been caught up in a major drugs conspiracy.

Merseyside Police linked Joshua Caldwell to the operation after finding images of firearms on a confiscated phone, including one disturbing photo of an antique French pistol next to bullet casings arranged to spell out: “F*** Dingle rats.”

The investigation led to the seizure of heroin and cocaine valued at nearly £120,000 and several firearms. Caldwell, already serving a 15-year sentence, was sent back to prison after being found with cocaine hidden in his underwear while on licence. During this incident, police also confiscated a Rolex watch from his girlfriend’s wrist, reports the Liverpool Echo.

Liverpool Crown Court heard last week that police were passing Caldwell’s home on Harrismith Road in Fazakerley at around 3.30pm on March 2 this year when he was seen entering a Vauxhall car. The 34-year-old was said to have been “nervous” when subsequently approached by officers, who were also unable to establish the ownership of the vehicle.

Derek Jones, prosecuting, described how this led to a search of his address, which saw four “golf ball sized” packages of cocaine and £2,035 in cash recovered from the bedrooms. PCs also noticed a Rolex on his partner’s wrist, which Caldwell stated he had purchased for her.

This led to the watch, which was valued at around £4,000, also being seized. The defendant subsequently volunteered further bags of drugs and a mobile phone from inside his underwear following his arrest.

Caldwell remained silent under interview other than telling detectives that the money was “a gift from his birthday”, which fell two days later. His criminal record shows two previous convictions for four offences, receiving two years in a young offenders’ institute in 2009 for possession of heroin and crack cocaine with intent to supply and 15 years in 2016 for conspiracy to supply class A drugs and conspiracy to possess a firearm.

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The ECHO previously reported that the latter sentence came in relation to an investigation which commenced during the summer of 2014 after a handgun was produced during an argument at the Park Cafe on Elmswood Road in Aigburth. This saw one of Caldwell’s associates brandish the firearm while members of the public, including a child, were present and warn: “This is my f***ing patch.”

A flat belonging to another of his co-accused on Woodlands Road in Mossley Hill was then raided in August that year, with officers recovering a quantity of high purity heroin as well as cocaine and adulterants. An antique St Etienne ordnance revolver, dating back to around 1886, was meanwhile found inside a Nike bag, with a sawn-off Beretta shotgun being discovered underneath the floorboards and a quantity of bullets seized from inside a box on a desk.

A third co-defendant was arrested at a nearby address in possession of a Remington pistol and a phone containing alarming images which warned of threats to the gang’s rivals, as well as picture of three weapons which were not recovered. Caldwell was meanwhile arrested in January 2015 with two Blackberry mobile phones which contained further incriminating photographs.

One showed the then 24-year-old holding the Beretta shotgun before it had been sawn-off. Michael Scholes, appearing for the prosecution on this occasion, described how he was identified as being the person shown in the picture due to his “very distinctively shaped eyebrows”.

Having been released on bail, Caldwell was again arrested at his then home on Lowbridge Court in Garston in August of that year as police recovered £15,150 in cash, a set of scales, tick lists and drug paraphernalia. His own counsel maintained that he was not the “Mr Big” of the plot as a leading figure in such a conspiracy would not be so “bloody stupid” as to be pictured holding a gun.

Caldwell has since been recalled on licence in relation to this sentence, and is not due for release until 2030 as a result. Peter White, defending, told the court during his latest appearance: “Quite simply, he tells me that he was released approximately two years ago. He has initially done very well.

“He entered into a steady relationship. He has assisted with her personal responsibilities and cared for her grandmother. He has engaged with mental health services. He tells me that he has had a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, stemming from incidents while he was in custody.

“He accepts, quite simply, that he fell back into his old ways and got drawn back into this circle. He holds his hands up to that. He can only apologise. They had plans to start a family together. His future looks somewhat bleak, given he potentially has another five years left on licence.

“He does have an unattractive record. There does appear to be another side to him, however. He has, at least partially, demonstrated that he can stay out of trouble. There are significant gaps in his offending.”

Caldwell admitted possession of cocaine with intent to supply and two counts of possession of criminal property. Appearing via video link to HMP Altcourse, he was jailed for 2,035 days on Tuesday.

This is the minimum seven-year sentence for a third drug trafficking offence minus credit of 20 per cent for a guilty plea. Sentencing, Recorder Richard Pratt KC said: “This was by no means the first time you have been involved in the supply of drugs.

“It is a point of regret, needless to say, that the severe sentence you received in 2016 did not have the lasting effect it ought to have had upon you. Having lost a good proportion of your 20s, you are now, inevitably, going to have to spend a fair bit of time in your 30s in prison, which, I am sure you appreciate more than anybody, is a waste of your life.”