Sunday, September 15, 2024 - Four men have been charged after a fishing boat carrying one tonne of cocaine worth an estimated £100,000,000 was intercepted off the coast of Britain.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) arrested the
suspects after seizing the huge haul when a boat was stopped at sea off the
coast of Newquay, Cornwall.
Border Force officers intercepted the vessel on
Friday afternoon, September 13, before uncovering the drugs.
Michael Kelly, 45, of Portway, Manchester, Jon Paul
Williams, 46, of St Thomas, Swansea, Patrick Godfrey, 30, of Port Tennant,
Swansea, and Jake Marchant, 26, of no fixed address, were all charged with
importation of a controlled Class A drug.
All four men have been remanded in custody to appear at
Bodmin Magistrates' Court on Monday.
Derek Evans, NCA Branch Commander, said: 'This is a
significant amount of cocaine that will represent a huge loss for the organised
crime group that attempted to import it into the UK.
'With our partners at Border Force and the Joint Maritime
Security Centre, we have successfully removed this harmful drug consignment
from the criminal marketplace.
'Its onward supply would have fuelled exploitation through
county lines activity as well as serious violence and knife crime.
'Our investigation into this importation continues.'
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