After 25 years behind bars, Curtis ‘Cocky’ Warren, a drug lord from Liverpool, will be released from a maximum-security jail within days.
In November, Warren, 59, who amassed a £300 million fortune and has ties to Colombian criminal traffickers, will be released from HMP Whitemoor in Cambridgeshire.
The Mirror said that police are concerned about the timing of the release of “important actors” following a large organized crime bust.
A person affiliated with the National Crime Agency (NCA) told the publication, “Warren has been the subject of countless top-level meetings.”
“They’re desperate to keep gangland shootings under control, but he’s still a prominent player with a wide influence on Merseyside and beyond, so there are extensive measures in place to monitor any potential impact.”
Warren, dubbed the Pablo Escobar of Britain and known by the alias ‘Cocky Watchman,’ is reportedly still supported by senior crime leaders in the port city who manage the illegal drug trade.
A source stated, “There will be many eyes on Curtis when he is released, and he knows he will be limited in terms of where he can go and who he can see.”
I’m confident that, being an intelligent man, he will maintain a low profile upon his release.
In the early 1980s, Warren worked as a nightclub bouncer. During the 1990s, he is thought to have been involved in armed robbery and international drug trafficking with Escobar’s enemies, the Cali Cartel.
In 1996, he was given a 12-year term for attempting to transport a £125 million narcotics cargo from the Netherlands to the United Kingdom, and a four-year sentence for murdering a fellow inmate.
Within weeks of his 2007 release, he was apprehended for a scheme to smuggle £1 million worth of cannabis into Jersey and sentenced to an additional 13 years in prison.
After failing to comply with a £198 million confiscation order, he was given an additional 10 years in prison.
On his release, he will be subject to a list of individuals with significant crime prevention orders.
As Warren, who was originally referred to by Interpol as “Target One,” has completed his term, he will not be placed on probation but will instead be watched by the NCA.
He can apply for a British passport and will not be subject to a curfew.
He will not be permitted to possess any assets worth more than £1,000, and he will be required to disclose his travel companions one week before to each and every international trip.
In addition, Warren will be restricted to one mobile phone, one sim card, and one phone number, all of which must be made available to the NCA upon request.
In addition, he must give a day’s notice if he wishes to borrow a friend’s vehicle, and he is prohibited from storing bitcoin.