Michael Michael (born 12 November 1957) is the ex-boss of a criminal empire called the Organisation which was involved in drug smuggling, prostitution and money laundering. Following his arrest, Michael turned

supergrass Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993 in Oxford. For the majority of the band's tenure, the line-up consisted of brothers Gaz (lead vocals, guitar) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass, backing vocals) and Danny Goffey ( ...

/police informer, with his evidence leading to 34 people being jailed for a combined 170 years, and the dismantling of 26 different drug syndicates. Among people he informed on were his wife Lynn, given a 24-month prison sentence suspended for two years for her role as a cash

courier A courier is a person or organisation that delivers a message, package or letter from one place or person to another place or person. Typically, a courier provides their courier service on a commercial contract basis; however, some couriers are ...

; and Janice Marlborough, his business lieutenant who ran his string of

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

s. Michael's evidence led to drugs worth £49m being recovered from a distribution network that is thought to have smuggled more than 110 kg (250lb) of

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

and 19 tonnes of

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

into Britain. Information about Michael's work as an informer remained secret until December 2001, when a judge at

Woolwich Crown Court Woolwich Crown Court, or more accurately the Crown Court at Woolwich, is located at 2 Belmarsh Road, Thamesmead is one of twelve Crown Court centres serving Greater London. It is adjacent to both HM Prison Belmarsh and Belmarsh Magistrates' Court ...

sentenced him to six years in jail. Reporting restrictions that had been in place for three years were lifted. Michael had admitted one count of

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agree ...

to import cocaine, a similar charge involving cannabis, and three conspiracies to launder the proceeds. He has also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm. Michael, who lived in

Radlett Radlett is a village in Hertfordshire, England, between Elstree and St Albans on Watling Street, with a population of 8,042. It is in the council district of Hertsmere in the south of the county, and is covered by two wards; Aldenham East and ...

, Hertfordshire, is thought to have been given a new identity under the terms of the witness protection programme. Born into a Greek-Cypriot family in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

in the English Midlands, Michael's birth name was Constantine Michael Michael, but he decided to drop the use of the forename Constantine in adulthood.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Michael, Michael 1957 births Living people English gangsters English criminals English people of Greek Cypriot descent Crime in London Criminals from the West Midlands (county) People from Radlett