23 August 2025 , 15:53
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A pair of ’business partner’ brothers have been imprisoned for their roles in a drug trafficking operation. Geoffrey Kirk, 43, and Lee Kirk, 54, supplied cocaine and cannabis to customers across the country over a four-year period.
Geoffrey acted as a ’broker’. Both were said to have been at a ’high level’ in the illicit market. Like many others before them, they were caught following the infiltration of the EncroChat system in 2020.
Daniel Bramhall, prosecuting at Minshull Street Crown Court, said the operation ran from January 2019 to January this year.
"The brothers were business partners in drug supply," he said. Geoffrey was said to have been involved in both cocaine and cannabis supply, while Lee Kirk was involved purely in cannabis supply.
The pair were described as ’high-level drug traffickers’ and supplied kilos of class A and B drugs across the UK. Geoffrey Kirk used the EncroChat handle ’Sage Wizard’ and acted as a ’broker’.
Messages on pricing and delivery dates were read in court. Lee was arrested at his home as officers conducted a search. Police found £10,870 in cash and a knuckle duster.
At Geoffrey’s home, police found 154 grams of cocaine, as well as MDMA, digital scales, and other drug-related paraphernalia. His mobile was seized and showed exchanges with his brother about drugs, as well as news from the courts about the EncroChat evidence being admissible.
Defending Geoffrey, Graham Rishton said he was ’staring down the barrel of a sentence of some significance’. "He has a partner of 25 years," he added. "He first began minding drugs for friends, and it developed from there.
"He knows he has disgraced himself and let his family down. He is deeply sorry."
For Lee Kirk, David James said he did not have an EncroPhone. "He does show the ability to change his life around," he added.
Jailing the brothers, Judge Joanne Woodward said: "This was organized on a substantial scale. This was the wholesale brokering and transfer of large quantities of drugs. Encrypted phones were used to avoid detection."
Geoffrey Kirk, of Victoria Street, Openshaw, was jailed for seven-and-a-half years. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class A and B drugs.
Lee Kirk, of Victoria Street, Openshaw, was jailed for five years. He admitted conspiracy to supply class B drugs.
A Proceeds of Crime Act hearing was set for December 8.
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