Inverness drugs baron with gangland ties back behind bars

An Inverness drugs boss quickly returned to a life of crime shortly after being freed from jail, a court heard.

Ryan Ferguson was snared during a large scale operation in the Highlands.

In cracked encrypted messages, he called himself "Titanium Otter" as the 30 year-old directed the illegal operation including organising drug "stash sites" in local woods.

At one point Ferguson even got one gang member - an ex-amateur footballer - to try and buy a drone as he was suspicious that police were tracking them.

Ferguson was eventually held in June 2022 shortly after he landed back from a holiday in Thailand.

He is now back behind bars after he pled guilty to a charge of being involved in serious organised crime.

Ferguson will be sentenced later this month.

The High Court in Glasgow heard he had previously been jailed twice for drug trafficking and money laundering offences.

Ferguson, of Inverness, was freed from his last sentence in 2019.

But, prosecutors stated that from June 13 that year he was back to his old ways.

It emerged he was part of crime mob who had forged links with gangs based in Glasgow and the north east of England.

Prosecutor Paul Kearney KC said: "He is assessed to be the head of the organised crime group.

"This involved arranging deliveries of controlled drugs, the movement of large sums of cash and creating 'stash sites' within different wooded areas of the Highlands.

"He played a leading organisational role in sourcing, purchase and onward supply of kilo and multi-kilo quantities of cocaine."

The court heard of his contact with numerous associates involving the discussion of drugs and dirty money.

Ferguson had been hit with a Serious Crime Prevention Order in 2019 - a so called 'super Asbo' designed to tackle and monitor criminals when back on the streets.

This included him only been allowed access to one mobile.

But, the court heard he went on to use at least 29 phone numbers and other devices.

This allowed him to run the trafficking operation and initially avoid detection.

Contact with associates was often via the once top secret Encrochat encrypted phone network used by criminals before it was cracked by the authorities.

The hearing was told of a number of seizures police made during the probe.

In June 2020, a total of £142,098 of high purity cocaine was found hidden under moss in Glen Glass woods in the Highlands.

A further £350,000 of the drug was discovered after two men linked to Ferguson were stopped in separate raids.

Around the summer of 2021, Ferguson was captured on hidden cameras on a motorcross bike appearing to make a drug pick-up from a 'stash site' near Alness.

Prior to that, Ferguson had arranged with Alasdair Finlayson to buy a drone advertised online.

Mr Kearney: "During that conversation, both mention the police will go 'mad'.

"It can be inferred that Ferguson was aware of the police surveillance in the expansive woods and that a drone camera would assist him and others."

But, Finlayson ended up being arrested. The 26 year-old and others were jailed last month after admitting involvement in the drug operation.

Ferguson was arrested at Glasgow Airport on June 8 last year as he returned from holiday with his partner.

The charge he pled guilty to - via his lawyer Graeme Brown - spanned between June 13 2019 and September 17 2021.

Lord Clark remanded him in custody as sentencing was deferred for reports.