Sub-machine guns imported to London from Europe by a prisoner from his cell were the same model as a gun used by a terrorist in the Paris shootings.

Wandsworth prison inmate Alexander Mullings, 23, was found guilty at the Old Bailey on Friday of masterminding the importation of up to eight Skorpion sub-machine guns from Germany to London.

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Gun-runners: Alexander Mullings and his ex-girlfriend Emily Ciantar imported sub-machine guns to London

The Czech-made gun, which fires 850 rounds per minute and has been known to sell on the black market for more than £3,000, is the same gun used by Amedy Coulibaly in his attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris on January 9.

Police recovered three of the guns imported by Mullings between April and June last year: one during a firearms raid in Mitcham, one at a Parcelforce depot in Coventry and another as it arrived in north London.

But a further five packages believed to contain Skorpions have never been recovered.

The jury’s verdict, which was announced after more than a week of deliberation, comes as the Government ramps up security measures over fears of a similar shooting in London.

Last night the Metropolitan Police announced a range of heightened security measures, including deploying more firearms officers.

Meanwhile, a French enquiry into the Paris attacks is trying to find out how the guns and ammunition used in the shootings were obtained by terrorists.

Mullings, a north London gangster known as "Smokey", ordered the guns and ammunition from Cologne, Germany.

Eight parcels were posted via Parcelforce to two addresses in north London between January and June last year.

Emily Ciantar, 20, Mullings’ former girlfriend, acted as a courier and receptionist for Mullings, delivering the guns to buyers.

On April 12 she took a taxi from north London to Commonside East, Mitcham, to deliver a package to Spencer Inglis.

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One of the guns was found in Commonside East during a firearms raid last April 

During a firearms raid by the Met’s Trident Gang Command later that night, police found a Skorpion sub-machine gun, 74 rounds of ammunition and £480 in cash.

After fleeing from police to his back garden to hurl mobile phone evidence over a shed, Inglis was arrested and told an officer: "I’ll find you on your day off and shoot you."

Appearing alongside Mullings and Ciantar in the dock last week, he was found guilty of possession of a prohibited weapon.

The three accomplices are due to be sentenced on February 26.

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How did the guns get to London? The Czech-made guns were posted from Germany to London via Parcelforce 

Detective Chief Inspector Rebecca Reeves, of Trident, said: "These Skorpion sub-machine guns are some of the most dangerous weapons I have ever seen reach the hands of UK criminals.

"They are relatively small and easy to conceal, but they can fire semi-automatic rounds.

"What’s more, the group had managed to find a supplier who was willing to sell them high quality ammunition."

Earlier in the trial, the court heard how Mullings had instructed Ciantar to send an email to a supplier from an internet cafe in Sutton.

Ciantar transcribed an email asking: "Does the Bernadelli come with 100 rounds?..I’m definitely interested in the new stock."

A Bernadelli is a semi-automatic shotgun manufactured in Italy until the 1960’s.

Police are trying to trace further machine guns which the gun-runners might have brought into the country.

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Don't take a photo of yourself holding a gun if you have a distinctive tattoo: Ciantar delivered a Zoraki pistol to Reading in January after sending these photos to Mullings in prison

Since the start of the trial, two Skorpions have been seized in different areas of London, but it is not yet known if they were imported by Mullings.

Also accused of conspiracy to transfer the machine guns and ammunition were Joseph Macgillivary, 55 and Islington woman Sarah Anderson, 24.

Seven of the eight packages were delivered to Macgillivray's home in Finsbury Park. He claimed he thought they contained porn and he was signing for them to save a friend from embarrassment.

He was cleared of all charges.

Prisoner and girlfriend guilty of running machine gun smuggling business using Parcelforce

Anderson, of Islington, is a known friend of Mullings whose fingerprints were found on bags containing the Skorpion gun and ammo recovered in Mitcham. She was cleared of all charges.

A spokesman for Royal Mail, which owns Parcelforce, said: "Where Royal Mail has any suspicion that illegal items are being sent through any of our networks, we work closely with the police and other authorities to assist their investigations and to prevent such activities from happening.

"For obvious reasons, we are not able to give any further details about our security measures as this would compromise our operations."