John Hulse, Robert Marshall and Jason Howett-Elliott’s role in Ironside cannabis syndicate revealed

Police were shocked to discover who was really at the centre of a huge cannabis syndicate that they thought was the work of criminal bikies.

When police broke down the door of the Northfield home and six men were in the process of packaging hundreds of kilograms of cannabis into vacuum sealed bags, their first reaction was to link the crime to an outlaw motorcycle gang.

But as detectives delved into thousands of messages exchanged on the AN0M platform, they discovered it was a stand-alone syndicate manned by “blokey blokes” in search of a “quick bob”.

Rather than being linked to the Rebels Motorcycle Club, which have been cleared of any involvement and have long maintained they have no stake in the operation, the syndicate included men with very specific roles to play.

John Hulse, 46, would receive cannabis deliveries at his home before transporting them to the Northfield house to be processed.

Heat sealed bags of cannabis while being processed at the Northfield property. Picture: AFP

Robert Leigh Marshall, 38, would also transport cannabis to the Northfield property.

But it was Jason Howett-Elliott, 34, who was being paid$30,000 a month to live in the property, prepare the cannabis by wetting or drying the crop and to crosscheck the amounts received like any legitimate warehouse worker would.

While all three men played crucial roles in the multimillion-dollar operation, their lawyers have characterised them as “blokey blokes” who got sucked into criminal underworld to make quick money.

All three men have pleaded guilty to their involvement in the commercial-level enterprise, which was one of Operation Ironside’s earliest successes.

During sentencing submissions in the District Court, a Commonwealth prosecutor told Judge Rauf Soulio said that another man, who has yet to enter a plea to the charges, was the mastermind behind the offending. Two others are also yet to enter pleas.

“It is the prosecution case that he was the principle organiser and financier of the ongoing operation, which these offenders were part of,” the prosecutor said.

One of the six accused is led from the Northfield drug house by police. Picture: AFP

“Each of the men played a supporting role. All three were present on the day the warrant was executed and that house was dedicated to the packing of cannabis.”

She said Howett-Elliott and Hulse both had encrypted AN0M devices to co-ordinate their activities before the house was raided.

All three were then given AN0M devices after the arrests so they could communicate with each other – not knowing that their messages were being monitored.

They were all rearrested and charged with breaching bail by communicating with each other and were remanded in custody.

Evidence from the Northfield drug house after being seized by police. Picture: AFP

Tim McGrath, for Marshall, told the court his client’s involvement had been “the biggest mistake of his life”.

“He saw an opportunity to make a quick dollar when the money was tight and it seemed like an easy way to make a couple of bob,” Mr McGrath said.

Judge Soulio said that to describe the operation as making a “couple of bob” was to fail to recognise the seriousness of the offending.

Marshall received at least $68,000 for his involvement in the operation.

Tim Dibden, for Hulse, told the court his client had been “just happy to help” package the cannabis.

The court heard Hulse had been struggling with the murder of his father John Hulse, who was killed in Papua New Guinea in 2011, and had resorted to drug use.

Mark Twiggs, for Howett-Elliott, said his client “couldn’t be more remorseful” for his role in the offending.

The prosecutor conceded that all three men had their roles to play in the operation, none of them were at the top of the criminal hierarchy.

The three men, all of whom are in custody will be sentenced in May.

Originally published as John Hulse, Robert Marshall and Jason Howett-Elliott’s role in Ironside cannabis syndicate revealed