Three jailed Ayrshire drug traffickers have been given court orders designed to prevent their involvement in serious organised crime.
Alan Stewart, 44, Leslie Montgomery, 64, and Matthew Cullimore, 37, were jailed for a total of 14 years last month after they admitted being involved in serious organised crime between March 2020 and October 2022.
They were brought to justice after police identified thousands of mobile messages between them discussing drug deals and payments involving hundreds of thousands of pounds.
At the High Court in Glasgow on Monday, they were each made the subject of Serious Crime Prevention Orders (SCPOs).
The orders, which will last a further five years, are designed to protect the public and prevent Stewart, Cullimore and Montgomery from reoffending from the date they leave prison and are designed to prevent their return to crime.
Sineidin Corrins, Deputy Procurator Fiscal for specialist casework at the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said: “The Serious Crime Prevention Orders granted against these individuals are a powerful tool in combatting serious organised crime.
“As a result of these orders, after they are released from prison, the ability of these individuals to return to serious organised crime will be significantly restricted. Breach of a SCPO carries a potential five-year prison sentence.
“As well as prosecuting criminals, COPFS is using all the tools available to us to protect Scottish communities from the harm done by serious and organised crime gangs.
“SCPOs are one of the ways we can do that, ensuring restrictions are placed on offenders’ activities and that they are subject to monitoring upon their release from prison.
“The restrictions placed on these men are designed to prevent any future involvement in serious crime.”
Stewart, Cullimore and Montgomery were apprehended after French and Dutch authorities retrieved data from the EncroChat phone network used by criminals, which the gang had been using to co-ordinate their illegal activities.
The messages, sent between March and June 2020, revealed plans to obtain and supply large quantities of cocaine and cannabis across Ayrshire.
At the High Court in Edinburgh on September 6, Stewart – identified as the gang’s ringleader - was jailed for five years and four months after he admitted being involved in serious organised crime between March 2020 and October 2022.
Montgomery and Cullimore were each sentenced to four years and four months after they also pled guilty to the same charge.
The convictions of all three men stemmed from Operation Wildcard, a police operation investigating serious organised crime in Ayrshire and the surrounding areas.
All three will also face confiscation action under Proceeds of Crime legislation to recover monies illegally obtained.