The 'gangsta grannies' running criminal empires - from cat-loving coke queen to feared mob bossFrom community champions to grey-haired cat lovers on benefits, grannies are increasingly becoming bigger players in the underworld, leading crime clans through control rather than intimidationView 7 Images Deborah Mason was dubbed "Queen Bee" (Image: PA)With their blue rinse and glasses, grannies are not the archetypal crime lord associated with running a huge drug empire. But the number of unlikely gangster grandmothers heading up crime clans across the UK is on the rise. ‌They include a community hero operating as a secret heroin peddler and a grey-haired cat lover who oversaw a million-pound cocaine empire. And Europol’s 2025 EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment found the ‘DNA of organised crime’ is changing. With her position in the criminal underworld cemented, ruthless Maresca later became the first female leader of the Camorras, the powerful, clan-based Italian criminal organisation known for drug-trafficking, money laundering and extortion.

Source: The Star January 28, 2026 10:14 UTC