Drug gang councillor vows to shut down Nation.Cymru after we expose his crimes
A convicted member of a drug gang who we exposed after he was co-opted onto a city council says he has vowed to get Nation.Cymru shut down.
Nick Pritchard, a businessman who chairs Bangor City FC and the stadium the club plays in, also described Nation.Cymru journalists in a Facebook post as “rats”.
Last week we revealed how Pritchard, who recently announced his intention to stand as a Reform UK candidate, had been deleting his social media output.
However, he was unable to expunge from the record a BBC story that reported how he was jailed for three and a half years in 2010 for his involvement in a gang that grew cannabis plants worth £14m .
The story states: “Three men have been jailed for their part in running a cannabis factory in a rented commercial property, involving drugs worth £14m.
“Twenty Chinese and Vietnamese people have already been convicted and sentenced to jail.
“It brings to the end a major investigation, code-named Operation Jade.
“North Wales Police found what is thought to be the largest cannabis farm in the UK – 11,276 plants in Bangor.
“The haul was found in a converted building supplies store.
“The hearing at Caernarfon Crown Court dealt with a property agent and builders involved in the premises used for cultivating the drugs.
“Nicholas Pritchard from Y Felinheli, Gwynedd, a letting agent, who found properties for drug growing, was jailed for three-and-a-half years.
“Twins Keith and Edward Reid, from Anglesey, builders who adapted them, received two-and-a-half years and 18 months respectively.
“They were all convicted of conspiracy to produce cannabis at an earlier trial.
“They were also convicted of money laundering by letting or converting buildings to be used as factories.
“The judge Merfyn Hughes QC told the men: “It is well known that large scale cultivation of cannabis is a huge problem in England and Wales.
“The judge told the men large-scale cultivation of cannabis was a huge problem” ‘Those who do it need assistance from people like you who are prepared to take a risk”’, he said.
“To Nicholas Pritchard he added: ‘You made available to this gang a number of properties including one where the largest crops ever discovered in the UK was found.’
“Police said the offences began in September 2007 when a Chinese organised crime gang began to rent a number of industrial and residential premises in north Wales in Conwy, Colwyn Bay, Deganwy, Wrexham, Caernarfon, and Bangor.”
Rambling
Our source sent us a link to a rambling Facebook video in which Pritchard, who was co-opted on to Bangor City Council in September 2025 without a public election as an Independent councillor, criticised immigration and spoke of his decision to seek election as a Reform candidate. The video was later disabled for general viewers.
He also posted a message in which he demonised asylum seekers, implying they would attack women and children.
Before we ran last week’s story, we invited Pritchard to comment, but he did not do so.
Instead, after our story was published, he posted a message to his Facebook accounting, stating: “Since when can rats @Nation.Cymru speak Welsh? Fk me they can do wonders in these labs these days.”
After Pritchard issued threats, made defamatory comments and demanded that our story be taken down, Nation.Cymru’s CEO/Editor Mark Mansfield wrote to him stating: “I’m perfectly happy with the accuracy of our article and will not be removing it.
“I also note the vile abuse, false claims and defamatory comments you have been posting on social media. Do you really believe that describing journalists as ‘rats’ is acceptable?”
Pritchard responded: “It was the nicest word I could think of at the time. Again 7 days to delete the article and I’ll delete all mine and stop my crusade to have your news outlet shut down.”
He also demanded that a ban on him posting on Nation.Cymru’s Facebook page should be lifted. The ban will remain.
Pritchard has subsequently posted on social media a message targeting a former editor of Nation.Cymru who left in 2022.
After we published our first story about Pritchard, a number of readers contacted us to thank us for exposing someone they regard as a vile, abusive individual.
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How on earth can an individual like this be co-opted onto a council? I’d suggest he’s bringing it into disrepute and should get the boot asap.
He won’t be alone, you can’t just walk in and sit down…standards are falling rapidly with the rise of reform…
Unfortunately its not just reform, its also independent candidates aswell as the named parties. In my area its rife with questionable independent councillors. I dont imo believe there are any true councillors left who have their heart in the community that they are supposed to serve.
I am very grateful to you lovely and brave folks in nation.cymru for reporting and standing up to these despicable vile bullies. I am surprised he hasn’t threatened to sue the BBC as well for not deleting his conviction. How was he even able to be co-opted into a council? Where the heck was their due diligence? Even a blind person can see he is unfit for public office.
Mini Twmp…
You are doing your job and long may you continue to do so.
Well said
Thank you for exposing this criminal.
It is clear that no proper checks were carried out on him prior to his being co-opted onto the council.
I would have thought that Bangor City FC would also have requested an Enhanced Criminal Record check, given the possible access his role there gives him to vulnerable people, including young people.
A quick check at companies shows he is the principal owner with at least 75% percent of the shares.
I noticed some immediate rant on his social media, like a pathetic child in the school yard moaning that someone had grassed on him being a naughty boy.
If the Football Association of Wales operates a ‘fit and proper person’ criteria for club officials, maybe they need to look into this and act accordingly.
Seems ideal for Reform. Should be a shoo-in.
Remind me what % of the vote Reform got in Y Felinheli the other day?
Comedy Gold .Its like some sort of political comedy .
Not content with having a former leader as a Russian asset eyeballing a 4 year stretch at HMP this week
A Senedd member facing a suspension for bringing it into disrepute.
They wheel out this character .
Maybe Farage sees it as a business opportunity
Reform prison wear
Gill better hope when he gets banged up the sisters don’t take a fancy to him
taking two tiering to new levels
This is no more than you’d expect from Reform UK.
Nevertheless, since the UK often tends to ape what has previously occurred in the USA, it seems not unlikely that Reform might be providing the next Westminster government.
After the Brexit vote I rather suspected that the UK might go downhill. Which may well be what’s happening.
“my crusade to have your news outlet shut down”…..lol deluded as well as a criminal. Regarding his online harrassment of a former Nation Cymru editor i hope the police have been contacted. PS. The FAW must make a statement on this odious individual – for them to remain silent means they are condoning his disgusting behaviour.
He sounds charming, proper true British gentleman right there.
Can we deport him to England?
You couldn’t make it up
Having been involved in letting properties for cannabis farms which chews up electricity
Pritchard started up an innovative energy efficiency consultancy.
https://ideasfest.uk/speaker/nick-pritchard/
Um, probably a fan of nuclear electricity generation as well.
There’s a place for man babies like him at GB news.
What an embarrassment to humanity.
It is quite evident that the ‘vetting’ process that Reform UK uses is purely superficial. Nick Pritchard, the convicted drug gangster, having resurfaced as a Reform candidate demonstrates this.
If there even was a vetting process. And why was he even co-opted on? Is this form of stealth infiltration without an electoral vote?
What a specimen!
Anyone a rat is Nick Pritchard. Apologies to all rats. No offence intended for any association with such a lowlife.
Where are the original articles? Why is no one asking about the terms of the lease on Bodlondeb or his “business partners”? It’s amazing how flashing the cash can get everyone to forget. The glass door reviews about his Ideas business are pretty shocking.