Case Studies

Gangland Murder

Nikolich & Carter were sought specifically to represent the defendant in this case and as such we were instructed to appear for one of the main defendants in arguably the most prolific "gang" trial ever to be brought by Greater Manchester Police and the Crown Prosecution Service in what was ultimately described as the case which brought an end to the "Gunchester" era in the North West.

The defendant was alleged to be part of a 12 man gang from the infamous "Gooch" gang who took part in "a wild west shoot out" at the funeral of an alleged rival gang member. He faced various charges including murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs, as well as possession of firearms with intent to endanger life.

The case ran for almost 6 months at Liverpool Crown Court and included "supergrass" witnesses, numerous witnesses giving evidence from behind screens and others via video link to the court. Nicola Carter and Gareth Martin instructed Nick Clarke QC (9 St John St Chambers) and Katherine Pierpoint (Lincoln House Chambers); the client stated throughout that he had complete confidence in his defence team.

The Captain & the Cook

Nikolich & Carter represented two defendants in this lengthy trial at Winchester Crown Court which related to the importation of £36m worth of cannabis. The Serbian defendants, were the 'Captain' and the 'Cook' of the tugboat Abbira and were arrested after arriving into Portsmouth on their tugboat. Sixteen tonnes of cannabis was found stored in the ballast and water tanks of the boat.

The defendants included nationals from the UK, Israel, Serbia and Ukraine; the case which was prosecuted by the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office, contained over 5,000 pages of evidence, including material from Israel, the USA and Holland. This was an operation which involved multi national Police assistance and a lengthy trial took place with multiple translations and complex arguments.

www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/apr/16/drugstrade.drugsandalcohol