A robber greeted police with his middle finger while in jail for making a loaded revolver for teenage gangsters.
Nathan Kelly was a regular customer of 16-year-old gang leader Harry O’Brien, the baby-faced cannabis dealer behind three horrific shootings and a Dingle fire bomb.
O’Brien was convicted yesterday along with other members of his crew who brought terror to the streets of South Liverpool. Although more than a decade older, Nathan Kelly, then 27, is said to have a “close” relationship with O’Brien.
READ MORE:A 16-year-old boy leads a teenage mob in three shootings and arson
For three days last April, he agreed to keep his “graft” phone and answer it, plus take care of a motorcycle, helmets and a can of petrol for the gang’s young boss and his “lieutenant,” 16-year-old Michael McClean. . But when police raided the apartment Nathan Kelly shared with his girlfriend and child in Belle Vale on April 21, they also found a .22 rimfire revolver.
The weapon was loaded with eight bullets and hidden in an empty aquarium on his balcony. Stephen McNally, a prosecutor, said the gun was “ready for immediate use”.
The Liverpool Royal Court heard that when police arrived late that night, they searched municipal gardens in front of the apartment on Lee Park Avenue. There, hidden under the dirt and gravel, was a black garbage bag containing a 1892 New Army Colt .41 revolver.
As a police helicopter hung overhead and illuminated the area, Nathan Kelly made two “panicked” calls to O’Brien. Then, at 11.35 pm, officers stormed his address, where they found the loaded weapon, plus 36 suitable Remington .22 cartridges and nine more bullets in the aquarium.
Judge Neil Fluit, QC, said Nathan Kelly’s crutch was propped up in the aquarium with the gun inside. The judge said: “He still claims he did not know he was there.”
Nathan Kelly, now 28, has denied conspiracy to supply cannabis, two charges of possession of a prohibited firearm – linked to two pistols – and possession of ammunition. He was acquitted of the gun found in the garden, but was convicted on three other charges after trial.
The court heard prosecutors that Nathan Kelly kept the loaded weapons for O’Brien and McClean, but the charge against O’Brien for the gun was dropped for “pragmatic” reasons after he confessed to other crimes. McClean, now 18, of Upper Warwick Street, Toxteth, has admitted to possessing both weapons and ammunition, among other charges.
Teenage gangsters Harry O’Brien (left) and Michael McClean (right)
Nathan Kelly has previous convictions, including robbery and burglary. He admitted that he had violated a suspended sentence imposed last April for possession of an object with a blade – a “locking knife”. Judge Fluit said he should have assessed that loaded weapons could be used for crime and fired, “with all the risks it carries.”
In defense, Jason Smith presented a letter from Nathan Kelly’s mother, who is sitting in the public gallery. Judge Fluit said it was an “echo” of her hope that she could receive help for mental health problems in prison. Mr Smith said his client’s crime had a “traumatic” effect on his mother and family.
The judge said the seriousness of the case was “we all know what these young boys did with these weapons”. Mr Smith agreed and said it was “common sense”.
Judge Fluit said: “He had to plead [guilty] Mr. Smith. “The lawyer said his client knew about the minimum sentence of five years in prison for such a gun, as Nathan Kelly murmured in the dock.
The judge told Nathan Kelly that he had been convicted on “necessary evidence”. He said there was an element of “role swapping” and that he may have been manipulated to some extent by younger defendants. But he said, “You were a mature man and you had to withstand any pressure on you.”
Nathan Kelly jumped on his toes while in prison for seven years before giving his middle finger with both hands to police officers sitting across the courtroom.
Addressing Mr Smith, Judge Fluit said: “I’m not sure if your client has just made a very obscene gesture to the police. I’m not going to give it back – I’m sure they’re big enough to carry on my chin. “
Three other men linked to the case were convicted today.
An attack by O’Brien’s gang saw bullets fired from a stolen Audi at a BMW. A homeless bullet flew through the front door of the home of a “completely innocent” family in Dingle Lane and landed on their stairs on December 29, 2020.
Sean Kelly, 36, of Harefield Road, Spike
“Career Criminal” Sean Kelly, then 35 but now 36, from Harefield Road, Spike, had sold an Audi A1 to O’Brien. The car was taken in a burglary at a family home in Whimbrel Close, Runcorn on November 30, 2020.
Sean Kelly received the car on December 3 and whipped it to O’Brien and his gang in Sefton Park late on December 28.
When he was arrested and interviewed, Sean Kelly said he “took the car to do something for someone in prison” and used it for a month on fake license plates before selling it to a “kid” for £ 300. He admitted that he handled stolen goods.
Sean Kelly also admitted unrelated issues of aggravated misappropriation of a motor vehicle, theft, five charges of fraud, two charges of burglary and a suspended sentence for dangerous driving.
Sean Kelly, who had previous convictions for robbery and multiple thefts, was sentenced to three and a half years. He was suspended for four years and nine months.
Blaine Woods, then 28, from David Street, Dingle, and Jack Atkinson, then 18, from Llanrwst Close, Dingle, both admitted to conspiring to supply cannabis.
Woods was O’Brien’s “regular customer.” On April 26 last year, O’Brien and McClean took a cab to his home and gave him a plastic bag full of cannabis to store.
Police raided Woods’ home on June 11 and found three blocks of cannabis weighing a total of two and a half kilograms, worth about £ 24,000.
On April 28, Atkinson received a black Adidas backpack containing street cannabis deals. That same day, police searched his home and found him in the closet. Cannabis is not weighed and has no value in court.
Judge Fluit handed the two men 18-month community warrants.
He said Woods, now 29, “needs to know better” because he gave him 240 hours of unpaid work and a 20-day rehabilitation request.
Atkinson, now 19, received 180 hours of unpaid work and a 15-day rehabilitation program.
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