A DRUGS gang including a convicted killer who ran a £1 million heroin ring from his prison cell have been jailed for a total of almost 50 years.
Murderer Stephen Nisbet, 40, used a secret stash of mobile phones inside HMP Edinburgh to arrange drug deals across Scotland.
His brother James Nisbet, 46, set a up a supposed recycling firm as a front to help flood the country with heroin.
But, the duo - along with a team of couriers - were caught when detectives swooped in January last year following a massive police investigation.
It led to the brothers being convicted of supplying heroin following a lengthy trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
Passing sentences totalling 48 years and 10 months, judge Lord Armstrong said the men had been involved in an operation which was "organised and planned".
He added: "The courts must take full and proper account of the widespread harm that is caused by the supply and abuse of controlled drugs."
Stephen Nisbet is already serving an 18-year sentence after being convicted of murder in 2003.
Lord Armstrong described him as the "principal figure" and jailed him for 12 years, to begin after his current minimum prison sentence ends.
His brother was jailed for 10 years.
Speaking after sentencing, Lindsey Miller, procurator fiscal for organised crime and counter-terrorism, said: "A large-scale criminal network that sought to distribute millions of pounds of heroin across central Scotland has now been systematically dismantled.
"The accused kept on attempting to deal heroin even as their couriers and associates were being arrested, even as their drugs were being seized while all the time investigators were building a stronger case against them.
"The combination of painstaking mobile analysis and seven months of surveillance clearly showed the nature of the drug-dealing family business run by the Nisbet brothers, with Stephen Nisbet directing the drug dealing using mobile phones from inside Edinburgh Prison, and his brother James Nisbet ensuring the distribution of the drugs across Scotland from his premises at Platinum Waste Solutions, Shotts.
"Today's sentences act as a warning to criminals in Scotland that police and prosecutors are determined to bring them to justice and Proceeds of Crime actions have now been initiated against two accused to reclaim their illegal profits."
Police Scotland worked in partnership with the Scottish Prison Service and Nisbet has since been removed from HMP Edinburgh and is now housed in a different part of the prison estate.
This conviction is the result a Police Scotland covert operation, Operation Lapstone, which has been led by the forces Organised Crime and Counter Terrorism Unit (OOCTU).
A total of 66 people have been arrested during the seven month operation
Police said it was an example of the modern era of policing in Scotland, where a number of police officers have come together from different areas, deploying specialist resources to vigorously pursue criminals and bring them to justice.
OCCTU Detective Chief Inspector Colin Boyle said: “Serious organised criminals undermine the efforts of those that are trying to make an honest living.
“Nisbet, along with others, ran a drug empire throughout Scotland. Operation Lapstone did not just disrupt this empire - it dismantled it.
"As an organisation we are committed tackling the sale and supply of drugs in our community and this continues to be a top priority for Police Scotland.
“We will not tolerate this type of anti-social behaviour and we will continue to hold those who peddle drugs in our community to account and bring them to justice.”
Co-accused Ronald Harrison and Allan Holland, 38, were also found guilty of being concerned in the supply of heroin although had lesser roles. They received prison sentences of five years each.
John McMahon, 27, David Milne, 34, and Robert Borland, 35, all earlier admitted to related drug charges. McMahon received seven years and 10 months; Milne, four years; Borland five years;
Each of the jail sentences the men received was between four and eight years for their involvement.
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