EncroChat Eight: The narco bosses supplying Ireland with drugs
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What is the EncroChat Eight and how did they supply drugs across Ireland?
A network of narco bosses known as the EncroChat Eight were supplying some of the most powerful drug mobs, stretching from Dublin to Donegal and proving there is no border when it comes to the business of drugs. The links between the powerful gangs show a supermarket supply chain of cannabis, cocaine, tablets and methamphetamine being bought and sold like any regular commodity. And today I'm talking with Niall Donald about the fascinating case which provides a window into a corporate world. You're listening to Crime World, a podcast from CrimeWorld.com.
So two very major drug dealers have been convicted, again on your favorite network, the Anchor Chat
network.
And amazingly, despite obviously having no, there's no such thing as an Anchor Chat phone in the South. They both seem to have these extensive contacts in the South and all the time using the Anchor Chat network. But these two guys really are the real deal, aren't they? Big time. I mean,
this sentencing happened in the north on Friday morning. And there's a case there. It's a collection or a network of what we call narco bosses known as the Encrochat Eight. So they include the duo who were sentenced on Friday, Mark Dunford and Philip Shackles. And I'll go into a little bit of detail about them with you shortly. But I think the interesting point is that there's these eight AnchorChat users who are suppliers of drugs. They're the real deal, as you say. They have connections in Colombia. They have routes through France and Portugal. They have been bringing in cocaine and cannabis. They have been supplying tablets north and south, which are a really significant drug in both on the streets.
And they've also been bringing in some methamphetamine. Interestingly, just before they were busted on the Anchorage attack, they were planning to get and test some of this liquid ice, it's called. They were having a sample supply sent from Mexico and they were going to push it into the system to see
how it went down. So we have, I suppose, gangs like the Hennessy gang, for example, in Dublin, and they cause total chaos and very violent and absolutely are, you know, legitimate things to write about in terms of crime world. But you have these other sort of level of drug dealers that, although both of these guys have come before the courts before and have convictions, they're not on the tip of everybody's tongue, but they really are you know, the major importers, and they're dealing over these continents, not just Ireland or Europe.
Yeah, so I think we could describe this, and in particular it's interesting how far down south, how far west they're supplying, and the links between them all. You could describe these as, let's for example... Say Sentra. Yeah. Who are going to complain to me. But you have people open franchises of Sentra or Benetton or whatever it is. Yeah. And they're supplied by a central, you know, mothership. Yeah. Basically, Marks and Spencer, whoever it is, they get all their products. So they have the franchise and they're able to earn whatever they want, open their stores for as long as they want, employ and run whatever way they wish.
How did Mark Dunford and Philip Shackles become the first sentenced members of the network?
Some of the areas that they'll be operating in will be busier than others. There'll be more of a footfall, more money to be made. But one way or another, they're all buying in from the central suppliers.
Yeah.
their product. And this is exactly the same thing. And what's kind of emerged from this EncroChat 8 cases is that These bosses, as we'll call them, who were originally just seen to be supplying to a grouping called The Firm, based in Armagh, are actually... They have stretched their impact right down to Dublin, into what was a network run by Richie Carberry, which was formed... I mean, he was on one side of that Drogheda feud. And of course, the area where he is... Drogheda, you know, Bettistown, those areas, they have exploded in population, working population, because they're commuter towns from Dublin. North Dublin, up through Meath, into County Louth, across the border into Newry, Belfast, and all the way west along the northern coast to Donegal.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the EncroChat Eight and how did they supply drugs across Ireland?
0:02–3:37
2
How did Mark Dunford and Philip Shackles become the first sentenced members of the network?
3:37–7:03
3
What routes and commodities (cannabis, cocaine, tablets, meth) did the EncroChat Eight use?
7:03–10:12
4
How did the network’s ‘super‑market’ model link Irish gangs from Dublin to Donegal?
10:12–13:23
5
Who were the other key players (Desmond Enfield, Darren McConville, etc.) and what were their roles?
13:23–16:04
6
Why did the courts consider the use of EncroChat phones an aggravating factor?
16:04–20:51
7
How did international connections (Colombia, North Korea, Mexico, Europe) shape the drug supply chain?
20:51–24:17
8
What does the case reveal about the modern, cross‑border drug trade and future investigations?
24:17–27:05
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