How West Midlands Police snared drug dealers Skilledtwig and Noisy Jade in international operation

Two drug and firearms dealers - who called themselves Skilledtwig and Noisy Jade - have been jailed for almost 40 years following an international operation by West Midlands Police.

Real names Max Williams, from Wolverhampton, and Daniel Morgan, from Birmingham, attempted to hide their illegal and dangerous dealings behind encrypted phone chats using EncroChat.

But officers soon discovered their criminal activities in which Williams (Skilledtwig) was found to be a broker in semi-automatic and fully automatic weapons, ammunition and class A drugs. He spoke openly about his business and had regular conversations with Morgan (Noisy Jade).

Both men were also involved in the buying and selling of large quantities of cocaine, heroin, MDMA and different strains of cannabis in addition to hundreds of pills which are believed to have been ecstasy. 

How the law court up with Skilledtwig and Noisy Jade

But in 2020 law enforcement agencies in Europe had developed a way to collect to data from EncroChat, and the information was shared with officers from our Regional Organised Crime Unit for the West Midlands Region (ROCUWM).

A spokesperson for WMP explained: “We found chats showing the men sourced the drugs and took a wage, or as they put it 'a drink' off the top of the costs. By cross-referencing their chats, mobile data, and images from their phones our investigators were able to link them to their criminal trade.”

Among those images were a semi-automatic pistol which was being traded with another firearm for around £15,000, and a kilo block of cocaine, stamped with the word 'Paris'. The WMP spokesperson continued: “Most of the discussions the men had around drugs talked of quantities in kilograms, half kilograms and quarter kilograms.”

Morgan was arrested on December 10, 2020, and an address he was using in Tyndale Crescent, in Great Barr, was searched. As well as quantities of cocaine and heroin valued at over £5,000 being seized, around £85,000 in cash was also recovered.

Williams, aged 36, was arrested from his home in Sambrook Road, Wolverhampton, on December 11, 2020, and a number of phones were seized. Williams denied supplying class A and B drugs and the supply of firearms and ammunition but was found guilty after a four-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court in October last year.  He was jailed for 24 years on May 2.

Morgan, aged 40, of Parkeston Crescent, Kingstanding, who pleaded guilty to the charges at an earlier hearing, was sentenced to 15 years. 

‘A deterrent for others who use encrypted networks to commit serious offending’

Detective Chief Inspector Peter Cooke from ROCUWM said: "This was a highly intricate investigation which has seen us break up a supply chain of both firearms and drugs.

"As a result we've stopped significant quantities of drugs and numerous firearms from ending up on our streets. And both these men have now been given jail terms that will see them remain bars and out of our communities for a substantial amount of time. Our commitment to removing guns and drugs from our streets as Op Target continues force-wide, with the us taking a defiant stand against a range of serious and organised crime."

A Crown Prosecution Service spokesperson said: “The successful prosecution and sentencing of Max Williams and Daniel Morgan is a positive step in the fight against drugs and weapons trafficking. 

"The defendants thought they could evade detection using the encrypted communications service Encrochat but thanks to strong collaborative working between the CPS and West Midlands Police, French authorities and other criminal justice agencies, they have been held accountable for their actions, keeping these dangerous commodities off our streets. It is hoped that the sentence will act as a deterrent for others who use encrypted networks to commit serious offending."