Ex-gangster Darren Gee hasn't spoken to brother Daniel 'in years' for one reason

Former gangster Darren Gee and his brother Daniel "haven't spoken in years" following one brother's decision to abandon his criminal past. The duo were once the ringleaders of a round-the-clock open-air drug market centred on Everton's Grizedale estate, where they were raised.

Daniel made headlines recently when he was recaptured in Wigan after absconding from Kirklevington Grange prison during the summer. He is now back behind bars, serving the indefinite sentence handed down by a court in 2010 "for the public's protection" after being found guilty of firearms offences.

However, his brother Darren's life has taken a dramatically different path. Speaking to the Daily Express's On the Edge podcast, he insisted that he wasn't inherently evil.

He explained: "I'm not this nasty violent {person]. When as a kid I was kind and loving – nothing nasty about me. It was my environment that started poisoning my energy and making me horrible."

The drug empire that Darren and his brother established inevitably clashed with competing Merseyside gangs. On New Year's Day 2004, a double shooting occurred at the Royal Oak pub in West Derby, resulting in one fatality and another individual critically injured, reports the Liverpool Echo.

Darren, believed to have been the intended victim of a retaliatory attack in April that year, survived after ex-SAS officer Darren Waterhouse fired multiple shots at his vehicle. However, one of his associates, 18 year old Craig Barker, was killed and two others were wounded.

As the gang war escalated, more killings ensued and a special police unit was formed to dismantle the Gee brothers. Major confrontations between the criminals and the police occurred as they battled for control of the streets in