'Stupid' drugs trade enforcer is jailed for 15 years after police saw through his shotgun picture disguise because of his eyebrows 

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A cocky gangster accused of unleashing a campaign of fear and intimidation was jailed for 15 years after police recognised a picture of him posing in semi-disguise with a shotgun.

Joshua Caldwell, 24, from Liverpool, thought pulling his t-shirt over his nose would be enough to keep him off the radar of Merseyside police but he had not relied on one thing - his sculpted eyebrows giving him away.

Caldwell, who wore bright yellow rubber gloves as he held the weapon in a household bathroom, was linked to a major drugs conspiracy which involved the seizure of heroin and cocaine worth up to £118,308.

Cocky: Joshua Caldwell, pictured, was jailed for 15 years after police linked him to a drugs plot by this photo

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and conspiracy to possess firearms at Liverpool Crown Court.

Sentencing him judge Jonathan-Rowe Foster, QC, called him the 'leading light' in the 'sophisticated' plot.

Michael Scholes, prosecuting, told Liverpool Crown Court an investigation began in summer 2014 after a handgun was produced during an argument at a cafe involving an associate of Caldwell named Anthony Clements, who is still on the run.

Mr Scholes said: 'At the Park Cafe near Sefton Park, what you might call a leafy suburb, a weapon described as a handgun was produced during the course of an incident there which the Crown says involved Anthony Clements.

'Members of the public including a child were present. One member of the public who witnessed these events heard the words 'this is my f****** patch'.'

Police later raided a nearby flat and found an antique pistol, a St Etienne revolver dating back to around 1886, inside a Nike bag as well as a sawn-off Beretta shotgun under floorboards, and some bullets in a box on a desk.

Lists containing the names of customers were found, as well as an AA card in the name of Caldwell.

Caldwell was arrested in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, on January 25 last year, and two Blackberry mobile phones were seized containing the incriminating pictures, including the bullets and Caldwell holding a shotgun.

Weapon: After a flat-raid, a number of guns were found including this sawn-off shotgun and an antique pistol

Pictured, bullets spell out the initials of Joshua Caldwell in a picture found on one of the seized Blackberries

Mr Scholes said: 'The images were sent for forensic analysis. Caldwell has very distinctive shaped eyebrows, and his attempts to disguise himself failed pretty miserably.'

Lloyd Morgan, representing Caldwell, denied his client was the 'Mr Big' of the conspiracy and claimed a leading figure would not be as 'bloody stupid' as to take photos of himself holding a shotgun.

He said: 'He has a supportive family and both parents are of good character and are in full-time employment. 

He knows he has let not just himself down, but his whole family down.'

Firearm: This pistol was found by Merseyside detectives among a weapons haul seized after the flat-raid

Stash: This cash was found by detectives as part of the investigation that led to Caldwell's prison sentence

Unconvinced, judge Foster, addressing Caldwell, said: 'You were in the centre of both the drugs and firearms conspiracies. 

'Enforcing a drugs trade is to be enforcing yet more misery on those who have succumbed to addiction and despair.

'This sort of activity is all too prevalent in this great city and those who indulge in it need to know the consequences are real.'

Detective Superintendent Richard Carr, of Merseyside Police Major Crime Unit, said: 'We won't tolerate criminals who use guns to create fear and intimidation on Merseyside and we are also determined to crackdown on the people who help them by storing and looking after illegal weapons.

'We will be relentless in our efforts to crack down on serious and organised crime and I would continue to appeal to the public to tell us if they know where firearms or drugs are being stored.'