The Adams Family: London's Most Ruthless Drug Syndicate

In the 1970s, three Irish Catholic brothers from Islington, London began a rise from street-level petty crime that would make them among the most feared criminals in British history. By the 1980s and 1990s, Terry Adams, Tommy (Patrick) Adams, and Patsy Adams had transformed their Clerkenwell base into the nerve center of an organized crime operation that would eventually control significant portions of London's underworld.

Terry Adams, born October 18, 1954, as the eldest of 11 children, emerged as the brains behind the operation. The syndicate—also known as the A-Team—expanded beyond the three brothers to include other family members and childhood associates, creating a network that operated with the discipline and code of silence traditionally associated with Italian organized crime.

The Adams family's wealth came from multiple criminal ventures. Drug trafficking formed the backbone of their empire: by the early 1990s, they controlled much of London's supply of cannabis, ecstasy, and cocaine, with direct connections to Colombian cartels. Beyond narcotics, they orchestrated extortion rackets, protection schemes, gold bullion hijackings, and security fraud operations. Law enforcement would later credit them with accumulating a fortune estimated at £200 million, which they laundered through corrupt professionals, Hatton Garden jewelers, and legitimate businesses—including ownership of an entire west London street of bars.

Their methods were merciless. The syndicate has been linked to at least 25 gangland murders, predominantly eliminating informants and rival criminals. One high-profile victim was Solly Nahome, a jewelry dealer and the family's financial adviser, who was shot dead outside his Finchley home in September 1998. Such violence reinforced their reputation for ruthlessness and ensured a code of silence among those who might otherwise cooperate with authorities.