Drug dealer who stockpiled submachine guns at north London flat jailed for 16 years

Handout
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

A drug dealer who stockpiled two submachine guns and 300 rounds of ammunition at his flat has been jailed for 16 years.

Terrence O’Connor, 25, hid the Uzi 9mm and Czech-made .32 Skorpion in a holdall behind a false wall panel in Edgware, north London, as pictured below.

Police also recovered a silencer, £143,000 in cash and one kilo of cocaine valued at £36,000.

An automatic Uzi is capable of firing up to 600 rounds a minute.

In April last year, O’Connor met a suspect who was under surveillance as part of a money laundering investigation, a court heard yesterday.

The secret holdall behind a false wall panel
Handout

Officers swooped to arrest him when he removed items from the boot of a car in Silverston Way, Stanmore.

Detectives searched a black rucksack at his feet and found Class A drugs. But O’Connor told them: “I’ve never seen that before.”

Uzi submachine gun
Metropolitan Police

He also had an encrypted EncroChat mobile phone used by organised criminals.

During a search of his home in Amias Drive, empty drugs packaging indicated upwards of 100 kilos had been processed there. A money counting machine was seized.

Drug bags found in the flat
Handout
Money seized
Handout

O’Connor answered no comment to all questions during interview at a north London police station.

However, he pleaded guilty to supplying cocaine and possessing Class A drugs at Harrow Crown Court.

O’Connor, now of Webb Street, Bolton, also admitted two counts of having a firearm with intent to endanger life and possessing a silencer.

Skorpion submachine gun
Metropolitan Police

Detective Constable Kevin Davies, of the Met’s Proactive Money Laundering Team, said: “This sentence reflects the seriousness of the matters under investigation and will serve as a deterrent to those involved in serious and organised crime.

“O’Connor was involved in large scale drug trafficking and was also instrumental in the laundering of the proceeds of this crime.

“He had possession of dangerous automatic weapons, ammunition and a silencer, which would have been capable of causing death and serious injury on the streets of London.

“This investigation shows the close link between money laundering and those committing the most harm within London’s communities.

“It is also another example of the inextricable link between money, drugs and violence.

“We remain committed to putting people like O’Connor behind bars to ensure London is a safer place for everyone.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in