Aviseur International renseigne, sans complaisance, sur la problématique de la drogue, du narcotrafic, de la corruption et sur les politiques mises en œuvre par les différents Etats et les dérives que s'autorisent les fonctionnaires des administrations — aviseurinternational@proton.me — 33 (0) 6 84 30 31 81
Eleven people have been charged with attempting to smuggle more than 300 kilos of cannabis into the UK via Heathrow and Gatwick airports over the space of two days.
National Crime Agency investigators questioned the individuals following their arrest by Border Force officers, after they which they were charged with smuggling class B drugs.
Paige Jonas-Willingham, 21, of no fixed abode, and Paul Lambert, 42, from Salford, arrived on Saturday (21 September) on a flight from Bangkok, via Muscat. Approximately 45 kilos of cannabis was found in two suitcases from the same flight.
A third person, Raekelle Powell, 22, a professional volleyball player from Toronto in Canada arrived the same day on a flight from that city and was stopped after officers discovered approximately 19 kilos of the drug in suitcases.
A fourth person, Victoria Roberson, 35, from California, USA, arrived on the same day and was stopped after officers discovered approximately 36 kilos of cannabis in checked-in baggage.
On Sunday, Siobhan McTavey, 24, from Northern Ireland, arrived on a flight from Bangkok via Doha. Border Force officers found 45 kilos of the drug in baggage.
Malaysian national Chew Meu Wong, 42, arrived from Bangkok via Bahrain and was arrested after 43 kilos of cannabis was found in a bag.
Canadian nationals Christopher Duffell, 44, and Tania Fetherston, 51, who arrived on a flight from Toronto via Copenhagen, were arrested after 30.7 kilos and 34.7 kilos of the drug were found in luggage.
Malaysian national Siew Fong Chua, 33, who arrived on a flight from Bangkok, was arrested after 17.1 kilos of the drug was found in luggage.
Two people were also arrested at Gatwick after two bags which each contained 20 kilos of cannabis were seized. They were Peter Kargbo, 22, from Wolverhampton, who had arrived on a flight from Bangkok on Saturday, and 29-year-old Canadian national Malik Barrett, who had arrived on a flight from Toronto on Sunday.
Jonas-Willingham, Lambert, Roberson, Powell and McTavey all appeared at Uxbridge Magistrates Court on Tuesday (24 September), with Chua, Fetherston, Duffell and Wong appearing yesterday. All were remanded into custody before their next appearance at Isleworth Crown Court on 24 October.
Kargbo and Barrett appeared at Croydon Magistrates Court on Tuesday, where they were remanded into custody before their next appearances at Croydon Crown Court on 21 October and 28 October respectively.
Between the 14th and 20th September 17 people have been arrested and charged with attempting to traffic approximately 618 kilos of cannabis into the UK. They include professional footballer Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Nathaniel Benson, who are currently remanded in custody ahead of their next court appearances.
In August, the NCA issued a warning to travellers arriving into the UK from Thailand, Canada and the USA that they face jail sentences if caught attempting to smuggle cannabis into the country. However, arrests are still being made and the amount of cannabis seized in the UK so far in 2024 is three times more than the whole of 2023.
The increase in these seizures is fuelled by organised crime gangs who have access to cannabis grown overseas, in locations where it is legal, who are recruiting couriers to transport it to the UK where it can generate greater profit for them than growing the drugs themselves.
NCA Branch Commander Andy Noyes said:
“The NCA continues to warn people attempting to smuggle huge quantities of cannabis into the country.
“The gangs behind the trafficking of cannabis into the UK do not care that the couriers will likely be arrested and end up in prison – their sole purpose is to make money.
“Anyone who attempts to smuggle drugs into the UK needs to know that you will be identified, you will be arrested and you will spend time in prison.”
The NCA continues to work with law enforcement partners in both the UK and overseas to target high-risk routes, seize shipments of drugs and disrupt the criminal gangs involved, denying them profits.
Anyone with information on the smuggling of drugs through UK ports is urged to report it, anonymously if they prefer, by calling Border Force’s Customs Hotline on 0800 595 000.
Four guilty of 1.5 tonne cannabis importation after NCA sting operation
Their convictions follow a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation that led to NCA and Border Force officers discovering the drugs haul inside a shipping container at Tilbury Docks, Essex.
Daniel Yeboah, 54, Kristoffen Baidoo, 48, Kwaku Bonsu, 52, all from London, and Edward Adjei, 48, from Grays, were found guilty by a jury today (3 September) after a three-week trial at Southwark Crown Court.
Baidoo failed to appear at the trial, but was tried and found guilty in his absence.
All four men will be sentenced on 18 October.
The container arrived at Tilbury Docks from Ghana on 19 December 2019 where it was held before continuing its journey to London.
Intelligence obtained by the NCA and the Ghanaian Narcotics Control Commission suggested it contained drugs.
Pictured: Edward Adjei, Kwaku Bonsu and Kristoffen Baidoo
A search confirmed that 2,335 packages of herbal cannabis weighing a combined 1.5 tonnes were hidden inside white hessian sacks of Gari powder.
NCA officers estimate the street value of the drugs would have been approximately £4.3 million.
The drugs were seized from the sacks and replaced with dummy packages.
On the morning of 13 January 2020, the container travelled from Tilbury Docks on the back of a lorry to an industrial yard in north London under the watch of NCA officers.
It was met by Yeboah who signed the delivery note using a fake signature and a worker at the yard removed the container seal with an angle grinder.
Bonsu was observed by NCA officers circling round the industrial yard in his car before taking photographs of the container using his mobile phone, and Adjei was spotted dropping Baidoo off at the yard.
Seemingly realising the drugs were missing, they all then fled the site in different cars, abandoning the load shortly after the container was opened.
As the men left the area, NCA officers were in tow, and all were arrested later that day – Yeboah and Adjei in Homerton, Baidoo in Stratford and Bonsu in Edmonton.
Officers found a 10-tonne hydraulic press, often used for compressing drugs, at Baidoo’s address and seized a number of devices from the men, including mobile phones and dash cams from their vehicles.
Footage downloaded from the dash cam in Adjei’s Toyota picked up his phone calls to Baidoo and Yeboah shortly after the container arrived at the yard.
During a call with Yeboah, he said, “my brother, be a little watchful. It is all a little dodgy.”
Yeboah was also picked up on later calls telling Adjei, “I don’t think the food [drugs] is in it” and “there was Gari inside, they have removed most of the Gari. The people are thieves.”
Text messages and e-mails found on Baidoo’s mobile phone uncovered his plot to take delivery of the drugs at the yard, which he had rented under a fake name to disguise his identity.
It was also evidenced that a bank account belonging to Bonsu made multiple payments to a shipping company for the container to be delivered from Tilbury Docks to the north London yard.
NCA senior investigating officer Saju Sasikumar said: “Today’s result is testament to the joint international work between the NCA and the Ghanaian Narcotics Control Commission to intercept the drugs shipment, and the tireless efforts of our officers to identify the criminal group behind its importation.
“Had this huge haul of cannabis reached the UK supply chain, it would have fuelled exploitation through county lines activity as well serious violence and knife crime.
“Putting these harmful criminal groups before the courts and dismantling their illegal operations is a key part of the NCA’s mission to protect the public from serious and organised crime.”
A leading member of an organised crime group (OCG) that trafficked heroin and cocaine has been jailed.
The National Crime Agency investigated Stephen Earle, 52, from Crosby, Liverpool, who travelled to Portugal in July 2020, and remained there to avoid capture after NCA officers apprehended his associates in March 2021.
He was arrested by the Polícia Judiciária Fugitive Team in Faro in January this year at the request of the NCA, and returned to the UK on 18 March.
Stephen Earle
Earle worked closely with his cousin Terence Earle, 50, who was jailed for 16-and-a-half years in April last year. The pair used the encrypted communications platform EncroChat to run the criminal enterprise, with the help of subordinates Stanley Feerick, 70, and Lee Baxter, 50.
Baxter and Feerick have also been sentenced for their part in the class A operation and Feerick in relation to the creation of an amphetamine lab in Scotland.
Terence and Stephen used the EncroChat handles ‘ThickBoar’ and ‘Octo-hand’ respectively, and discussed prices for buying and selling the drugs as well as the logistics of trafficking.
The pair shipped at least 10 kilos of heroin and seven kilos of cocaine, with the former moved from Merseyside to Motherwell and the latter in the opposite direction.
Stephen Earle pleaded guilty to four drugs supply charges at Liverpool Crown Court on 16 April and was sentenced to 11 years and four months imprisonment at the same court today (2 August).
The NCA’s investigation formed part of Operation Venetic, the UK NCA-led law enforcement response to the takedown of the EncroChat service in June 2020.
NCA Branch Commander Jon Sayers said:
“Stephen Earle was a key part of a dangerous organised crime group that shipped class A drugs to be dealt across communities in England and Scotland.
“This lethal trade is closely linked to exploitation and violence, so bringing this OCG to justice has helped protect the public.
“Earle’s arrest in Portugal shows that law enforcement’s collective reach is wide and there is no place to hide for people engaged in drug trafficking.
“The NCA has the capability and international relationships to find you and make you pay for your crimes.”
En octobre 2004, Dominique Barella, le président de l’USM réélu à ce poste pour deux ans écrivait sur les hiérarques: « Incapables de conduire une pédagogie publique, incapables d’assumer la responsabilité d’actes pris sous leur autorité, ne rendent service ni à nos concitoyens ni aux magistrats ? Leur activité serait-elle seulement d’éditer des camemberts sur la productivité ?
Hier, à la DNRED (Direction Nationale du Renseignement et des Opérations Douanières), les dérives, magouilles, bidonnages, mensonges et autres anomalies…étaient au programme !
Corinne Cleostrate, qui a occupé différents postes importants au sein de la DNRED, avant d’en prendre la tête, ne semble pas avoir appliqué l’Art 40 du CPP, vous savez, ce texte qui dit::
Toute autorité constituée, tout officier public ou fonctionnaire qui, dans l’exercice de ses fonctions, acquiert la connaissance d’un crime ou d’un délit est tenu d’en donner avis sans délai au procureur de la République et de transmettre à ce magistrat tous les renseignements, procès-verbaux et actes qui y sont relatifs.Lorsqu’il estime que les faits qui ont été portés à sa connaissance en application des dispositions de l’article 40 constituent une infraction commise par une personne dont l’identité et le domicile sont connus et pour laquelle aucune disposition légale ne fait obstacle à la mise en mouvement de l’action publique, le procureur de la République territorialement compétent décide s’il est opportun :
1° Soit d’engager des poursuites ;
2° Soit de mettre en œuvre une procédure alternative aux poursuites en application des dispositions des articles 41-1, 41-1-2 ou 41-2 ;
3° Soit de classer sans suite la procédure dès lors que les circonstances particulières liées à la commission des faits le justifient.
Comme Cheffe de division d’enquêtes spécialisée à la direction des enquêtes douanières de la direction nationale du renseignement et des enquêtes douanières en 1994-1995, puis quelques années plus tard, de 2008 à 2011, cheffe de la direction du renseignement douanier, à la direction nationale du renseignement et des enquêtes douanières, Corinne Cleostrate n’a certainement pas oublié d’informer les DI DNRED en poste.
Corinne Cleostrate aura certainement fait passer le message sous forme de blancs peut-être, mais pas seulement aux directeurs de la DNRED, mais aussi à Jean Luc Vialla, (Photo à gauche) DG de la Douane Francaise de 1993 à 1996 sans oublier Jérôme Fournel, DG de 2007 à 2013, avec lesquels elle affichait une proximité permettant une bonne communication.
—————————-
Eux n’ont rien dit sur les anomalies signalées!
–Ou alors, quel procureur fut informé ?
–A moins que le « secret défense » ne couvre tout cela! …
°°°°°°
En FRANCE, la continuité est assurée pour que des lâches, des affairistes, des salauds, des attentistes et des opportunistes, toujours bien connectés, n’aient jamais le devoir d’assumer la moindre responsabilité!
Rappelons nous qu’en tant qu’agent infiltré de la Direction Nationale du Renseignement et des Enquêtes Douaniers, Marc Fievet qui a passé des années à risquer sa vie à travailler sur des affaires de trafic de stupéfiants depuis les ruelles de Gibraltar, celles de La Linea de la Conception et des quais de la marina de Puerto Banus en Andalousie, jusqu’aux immeubles de la 100ème rue de Bogotá en Colombie en passant par Tanger, Madrid, Tenerife, Milan, Zagreb, Dubaï, Rotterdam, Dublin, l’Écosse, Londres, Zurich, Le Liechtenstein, Caracas, Curaçao, Paris, Anvers, Djibouti et Le Caire, a été lâché par une bande de hauts-fonctionnaires de Bercy et Montreuil.
Marc Fievet qui a rencontré les plus hauts responsables du SVA espagnol, les responsables des secteurs cannabis et cocaïne du HM Customs Excise anglais, des agents des services allemands et des attachés du DEA Rome et Paris, toujours présenté par la DNRED comme l’agent en place sur la Costa del Sol et Gibraltar. Il a fourni des renseignements directement ou indirectement qui ont permis aux services hollandais, italiens, portugais, espagnols, canadiens et français de saisir plus de 100 tonnes de stupéfiants sans compter les biens saisis.
Marc Fievet est passé d’agent infiltré en contact régulier avec le ministre Michel Charasse, au statut de narcotrafiquant notoire condamné à perpétuité au Canada.
Donc depuis plus de 30 ans, Marc Fievet observe le comportement des DG de la Douane française et il est évident que chez ces gens-là, le courage d’assumer les actions terrains promues parfois, par des responsables politiques courageux et, parfois par des directeurs de la hiérarchie intermédiaire sur le terrain, ne fait pas partie des paramètres inculqués à l’ENA.
Prenons l’exemple de cet agent infiltré « NS 55 DNRED », qualificatif et emploi pourtant reconnus par des Directeurs de la DNRED ou autres directeurs…désormais en retraite… mais qualificatif et emploi rejetés par les « énarques conseillers administrateurs » de Bercy et de Montreuil qui sont, comme toute la DNRED opérationnelle le sait, des gens qui ont la connaissance innée et absolue des opérations terrains.
Alors …Fievet qui espérait que Jean Dominique Comolli…Mais non, lui était trop occupé à la SEITA pour brader la régie (des tabacs) et n’en avait vraiment rien à foutre, comme Jean Luc Viala d’ailleurs, qui n’avait qu’un seul souci, c’était d’améliorer son revers au tennis avec son entraîneur favori!
Pourtant Jean Dominique Comolli qui lui fut présenté dans le bureau du ministre Charasse, quelques jours après sa nomination, aurait pu lever le petit doigt pour le sortir de la merde ‘juridico-administrative’ internationale dans laquelle il se trouvait par manque de réaction de son successeur, Jean Luc Viala… Mais Jean Paul Garcia l’avait bien dit à Fievet au centre de détention d’Alhaurin de la Torre en Espagne lors d’une visite qu’il lui rendit, quelques semaines après son arrestation par Interpol, pour l’assurer du soutien total des autorités françaises, en précisant toutefois que pour la DG, donc DG, administrateurs et autres conseillers, les opérations mises en route du temps de Michel Charasse, le ministre et Jean Henri Hoguet, le boss de la DNRED faisaient parties d’un passé révolu et seulement susceptibles d’être reniées.
Pourtant à la DNRED, on aurait dû bouger, mais pas de ‘bol’ pour Fievet, le ‘tout en rondeur’ Bernard Pouyanné, le papa de Patrick, qui n’ayant rencontré Fievet qu’une fois en présence de Christian Gatard, ne pouvait être d’un grand soutien.
Pierre Mathieu DUHAMEL tenta une approche auprès de Madame Strachan, la DG du Customs excise anglais, sans y mettre le paquet avant de partir pantoufler à New York chez LVMH et devenir amnésique. Restait donc Joseph Le Louarn qui aurait pu et dû intervenir. Mais pas de ‘bol’ non plus, Le Louarn, successeur de Hoguet à la DNRED n’était pas un patron au sens noble du terme mais un parasite du système douanier. Joseph Le Louarn avait démontré tout au long de sa carrière, un égo surdimensionné par rapport à ses qualités et son seul souci n’était que la recherche de postes importants tout en restant totalement soumis aux décisions d’abandon d’opérations engagées au mépris des responsabilités inhérentes à sa charge comme le soutien des ses agents ou de ceux considérés comme tels. C’est lui qui accepta la directive de Nicolas Sarkozy de suspendre toutes les opérations d’infiltration menées par la DNRED; il en oublia de prévenir les principaux intéressés et alla jusqu’à refuser à Christian Gatard, le boss de l’Échelon de Nantes, l’assistance pour couvrir une réunion importante à Paris de « narco-négociants » pour l’enlèvement de 80 tonnes de haschich du côté de Djibouti.
Pas de montée au créneau pour défendre l’agent NS 55 !
Nommé à la suite de Viala, arrive François AUVIGNE, qui après un passage à l’Inspection des finances à sa sortie de l’ENA, avait été chargé de mission à la Direction des relations économiques extérieures (DREE) de 1986 à 1988, puis conseiller technique aux cabinets de Jean-Pierre Chevènement, alors ministre de la Défense (1988-1991) puis de Philippe Marchand, au ministère de l’Intérieur. Il avait ensuite dirigé le cabinet de Jean-Noël Jeanneney au secrétariat d’Etat au Commerce extérieur puis à celui de la Communication entre 1991 et 1993. De retour à l’Inspection des finances, il en avait été chef de service adjoint de 1994 à 1997. Après le retour de la gauche au pouvoir en mai 1997, il avait été nommé chargé de mission auprès de Dominique Strauss-Kahn, ministre de l’Économie et des Finances, et de Christian Sautter, secrétaire d’Etat au Budget. C’est là que Francois Auvigne gère alors le courrier que Fievet a envoyé à DSK par la valise (diplomatique) du fond de sa cellule de Renous au Nouveau Brunswick. Francois Auvigne envoie immédiatement au Canada messieurs Christian Gatard et Bernard Roux, l’attaché douanier de Washington, accompagné du consul général de France Olivier Arribe pour dire à Fievet de plaider coupable alors que Bernard Pouyanné avait envoyé Philippe Galy, alors attaché à Londres, lui dire à Bellmarsh (prison à Londres) qu’il pouvait et devait plaider non coupable au Canada.
Donc François Auvigne connaissait le dossier de Fievet avant de devenir Directeur Général de la Douane française. Plus Ponce Pilate que Ponce Pilate, il refusera toutes interventions au mépris de la continuité du service de l’État.
C’est ce qu’on appelle en langage plébéien un salaud institutionnel !
—————————————
Quand à Alain CADIOU, ( deuxième en partant de la droite, accompagné de Jean-Yves Le Drian, député, (à gauche) et de la ministre Florence Parly au Budget à l’époque après une virée découverte de la côte à bord d’un des trois Cessna 406 de la base des douanes de Lann-Bihoué.). Alain CADIOU ne s’en occupera pas du tout et, maintenant, retiré au Touquet Paris-Plage, il s’en tape que Fievet soit resté 3.888 jours en taule!
—————————————
Mais comment ne pas relire l’interview donné par Jean Henri Hoguet lors d’une émission le Mardi 17 mai 2005 à 15 H 00, sur France Culture, dans l’émission « Le vif du sujet ».
Le Journaliste: mais vous, justement, vous étiez un de ses patrons; est-ce que lors de ses recours en grâce, vous avez été consulté par l’État?
Jean Henri Hoguet-Ex-Directeur de la DNRED:Jamais, jamais ! Non, Ce que je sais c’est que, quand Fiévet, alors il y a dû avoir, sans doute, une fausse manœuvre quand on lui a dit de plaider coupable au Canada, donc, il en a pris plein les gencives, perpétuité, et là, on a peut-être commis une erreur technique, je n’en sais rien, mais ce dont je suis sûr, c’est que, quand Fiévet alors est revenu et qu’on l’a, qu’il a été rejugé à Bobigny pour transformer la peine canadienne en peine française dans les geôles françaises, je pense qu’à ce moment là et avant, il fallait intervenir du ministère des Finances « dont dépend la douane » à la chancellerie, au Garde des sceaux, en lui expliquant qu’un type qui est rentré et que le procureur général, peut-être, devrait requérir une certaine indulgence pour ce type en faisant état de ce qu’il avait fait pour nous. Hors, au moment où il est rentré, il y a un nouveau directeur général qui est arrivé (C’était François Auvigne), qui avait jamais vu la douane, qui ne connaissait rien à la Douane, mais enfin, c’est pas grave puisqu’il est inspecteur des finances, il a dit au chef de la DNRED, et je le tiens du chef de la DNRED de l’époque (C’était Jean Puons) ces informations et je n’ai aucune raison de mettre en cause sa parole. Il lui a répondu : « Monsieur, je ne suis pas là pour assumer les décisions prises par d’autres » et comme le chef de la DNRED de l’époque insistait en disant, mais Monsieur le directeur général, on peut pas laisser une affaire comme ça etc. il lui a répondu : » je ne veux plus entendre parler de cette affaire. » Et la conversation s’est arrêtée là, et moi je trouve inadmissible qu’un haut responsable de l’administration, un haut fonctionnaire tienne ce raisonnement, parce que… si il a accepté d’être directeur général des douanes, ça veut dire qu’il doit assurer la continuité de la responsabilité de l’Etat; hors en se lavant les mains, il ressemble à Ponce Pilate, mais pas à un haut fonctionnaire responsable.
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
Puis arriva l’onctueux François Mongin de 2002 à 2007, comme directeur général des Douanes et droits indirects et parallèlement secrétaire général de Tracfin. Lui aussi sera d’une totale discrétion sur l’affaire Fievet.
Ses « sbires administrateurs énarques et autres conseillers », agissant pour le convaincre que Fievet est un narco !
Depuis il officie chez HSBC, les gangsters de la finance !
—————————————
Après c’est Jérôme Fournel (photo à droite), ( Il nous a régalés de ses exploits!) qui à peine arrivé à Montreuil, interdit à Fievet l’entrée de la DG, ukase transmis par Jean Paul Garcia qui était alors en charge de l’A2. Reçu longuement dans le hall d’accueil par Garcia, Fievet ne put rencontrer Corinne CLEOSTRATE qui l’évitât savamment et refusa même le fanzine que Fievet avait préparé pour tracter devant la DG.
En fin de journée, Fievet ne put réussir à rattraper l’administrateur civil Gérard SCHOEN (photo à gauche) qui se sauva à sa vue!
Jérôme Fournel quand il apprit de la bouche de Jean Paul Garcia qu’un film était en préparation, lui rétorqua; « Ça aussi, il va falloir que je m’en occupe!«
Jérôme Fournel a pu compter sur Erwan Guilmin, énarque et administrateur civil pour répondre par la négative à toutes demandes d’indemnisation formulées par Fievet en répétant jusqu’à l’orgasme que Fievet s’était mis à son compte. Erwan Guilmin qui est un magouilleur le démontrera officiellement quelques années plus tard lorsqu’il sera pris et confondu d’avoir pratiquer le caviardage sur un document classé « SECRET DEFENSE » alors qu’il avait rejoint la DNRED comme DOD (Directeur des opérations douanières).
—————————————
Quand à Hélène Crocquevielle, il est impossible d’en dire la moindre chose, vue son insignifiance au poste de DG qu’elle occupa durant 4 ans, exception faite de sa facilité à jeter l’agent du contribuable par la fenêtre.
—————————————
L’espoir restait intact qu’enfin un DG assume la responsabilité de ce lâchage et ce DG c’était Rodolphe Gintz!
Lui n’a rien fait ! Ah, si, il a bloqué Fievet sur Twitter, indiquant qu’il ne voulait être complice de diffamations.
°°°°
Puis Isabelle Braun-Lemaire…
Avant le passage de flambeau à Florian Colas, ancien directeur de cabinet d’Olivier Dussopt…ministre fossoyeur des retraites, est aussi le ministre qui a massacré les missions fiscales, en se livrant à un travail de dépeçage de la Douane, travail qui avait été certes bien commencé par Gérald Darmanin lors de son court passage à Bercy, lorsqu’il demandait conseil à Jérôme Fournel pour arranger le PSG...
A prominent member of an Albanian organised crime group has been jailed for a second time for Class A drugs offences.
Bujar Cozminca, 33, purchased and supplied 100 kilograms of cocaine, with a wholesale value of £3.5m and a street value of around £8m, in addition to laundering £2.5m of criminal cash.
When he was arrested in May 2021, £300,000 in cash was found at two properties he used for drugs deals in Islington and Wembley.
Officers from the Organised Crime Partnership (OCP) – comprising National Crime Agency and Metropolitan Police officers – also discovered ledgers indicating drug deals amounting to almost £2 million.
Cozminca admitted conspiracy to supply cocaine and money laundering and on Friday (28 June 2024), he was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court to 12 years in prison.
Cozminca, of High Road, Wembley, was already known to UK law enforcement.
In 2012, he was convicted of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and sentenced to 21 months in jail. He was deported back to Albania, but subsequently re-entered the UK illegally.
He was arrested by OCP officers using evidence from Operation Venetic – the NCA-led response to the 2020 takedown of encrypted communications platform EncroChat.
Using the handle ‘Insatiable beta’, Cozminca trafficked multi-kilo deals of cocaine across the UK and laundered hundreds of thousands of pounds of criminal cash on a weekly basis.
OCP officers built the case against him by wading through 6,000 EncroChat messages.
His organised crime group had far-reaching international connections and Cozminca was able to operate throughout the nation’s Covid-19 lockdown and beyond.
OCP officers are continuing to investigate other members of the same OCG.
Andrew Tickner, OCP senior investigating officer, said:
“Cozminca is an established member of an Albanian organised crime group who believed he could operate with impunity.
“Thanks to concerted effort and skilful work by officers from the NCA and the Metropolitan Police Service, crucial evidence obtained from his EncroChat handle made clear the extent of his criminality, leaving him no choice but to plead guilty.
“We are determined to pursue individuals like Cozminca who think they are above the law, and we will continue to work with our partners to bring them to justice.”
Two men have been charged after £37 million of cocaine was seized from a boat off the coast of Suffolk as part of a National Crime Agency investigation.
NCA officers started an investigation after a rigid hulled inflatable boat (RHIB) was intercepted near East Benacre Broads in Suffolk on Monday (24 June).
A Border Force cutter moved in but the boat initially failed to stop and one of the men was seen jumping from the vessel and swimming towards the beach.
The boat was successfully stopped and seized by Border Force and searched by NCA officers where 350 kilos of cocaine was found hidden under tarpaulin on the front of the RHIB.
Investigators believe the vessel had travelled out to sea where it had met a larger ship and collected the drugs.
Bruce Knowles, 55, of Dereham, Norfolk, and Ferhat Gumrukguoglu, 31, from the Netherlands, were arrested the same day on suspicion of importing a controlled drug. Officers from Suffolk and Norfolk forces assisted in the arrest of one of the men.
Both were interviewed by NCA investigators and charged to appear at Norwich Magistrates Court. Knowles appeared yesterday (25 June) and was remanded until his next appearance on 23 July. Gumrukguoglu will appear at the same court today (26 June).
Paul Orchard, from the NCA, said:
“This is a very significant seizure of cocaine and will be a huge loss for the organised crime group involved in smuggling it into the UK.
“With thanks to our partners in Border Force, we have been able to remove these dangerous drugs from the market before they reached the streets of the UK, where they would undoubtedly have fuelled further crime and exploitation.
“This seizure is a great example of joint working to disrupt criminal activity and protect the public from serious and organised crime.
“Our investigation into this importation continues.”
A French drug trafficker who was tracked down by the National Crime Agency after spending almost a decade on the run has been jailed for 19 years.
Hoosain Faweez Mungur, 62, was living in a £2 million house in Woodford Green, London, when he was initially arrested on 10 May 2013.
Border Force officers carried out a search of his car as he got off a ferry at Harwich. Four kilos of cocaine were found concealed inside a spare tyre, and the case was referred to the NCA.
Following questioning Mungur was bailed pending further enquiries, but in 2014 he disappeared after initially telling officers he was returning to France for medical treatment.
In November 2016 a UK-bound lorry was stopped at border controls in Calais. Inside the load officers found 45 kilos of cocaine and 25 kilos of heroin, hidden within a pallet containing boxes of hair extensions.
Evidence uncovered by the NCA showed that Mungur had been the organiser for the shipment and several others in previous months, with companies and phone numbers linked to him recorded on the shipping details.
The drugs would be sent to contacts in the UK and in return, payments were made into bank accounts belonging to front companies set up by Mungur. Two of his co-conspirators would later be jailed for four-and-a-half years each for money laundering offences in 2019.
Mungur was eventually located and arrested as he attempted to board a flight to the Dominican Republic at Madrid Airport in Spain in June 2023. He was extradited back to the UK two months later to stand trial.
On 20 June a jury at Chelmsford Crown Court found him guilty of three counts of importing class A drugs and one count of money laundering.
The following day a judge sentenced him to 19 years in prison.
NCA Branch Commander Mark Howes said:
« Mungur was a career drug trafficker with convictions in France and Germany before he came to the UK.
« Following his initial arrest he fled the country, and continued his criminal activity from overseas.
« After spending so long at large he may have thought he was safe living abroad, but the NCA worked with international partners to have him returned to the UK to face justice.
« This case demonstrates the NCA’s determination to do all we can to track down and put before the courts those involved in serious organised crime. »
On the evening of Thursday 27/06/24 officers from the Merseyside Organised Crime Partnership seized a parked van in the Waterloo Road area of Liverpool.
Following a search, the vehicle was found to contain a significant quantity of volatile precursor chemicals used in the production of controlled drugs.
A 63 year old local man was later arrested in the Waterloo Quay area by Organised Crime Partnership Officers and questioned at Merseyside Police premises.
The subject has since been released under investigation.
Merseyside Organised Crime Partnership is a partnership between Merseyside Police and the National Crime Agency, created to protect the communities of Merseyside from Serious Organised Crime.
National Crime Agency officers have charged three people with drug smuggling offences after three separate cocaine seizures off the same flight.
The trio were all on board a plane which flew in from Montego Bay in Jamaica and landed at Heathrow on Monday evening.
NCA investigators were brought in after the men were stopped by Border Force officers, who had recovered around 45 kilos of cocaine from three suitcases.
After interviewing the men, NCA officers charged all three with importing class A drugs.
They are:
Anthony Cameron, aged 72, of Millmead Road, Birmingham;
Barry Costello, aged 63, of Mountfield Way, Orpington;
a 17-year-old from Orpington who can’t be named for legal reasons.
All three are due to appear before Uxbridge Magistrates today, Wednesday 1 May.
NCA senior investigating officer Ian Truby said:
“These were significant seizures, and in making them we have denied a significant amount of criminal profit. The NCA continues to works closely with our partners at Border Force to protect the public and prevent class A drugs reaching the streets of the UK.”
Fernando Jacobo Mayans Fuster, 51 ans, originaire de Saragosse en Espagne, est arrivé à l’aéroport le mercredi 1er mai, après avoir pris un vol depuis Los Angeles aux États-Unis, via Londres Heathrow.
Après contrôle, des agents des forces frontalières ont localisé 278 colis répartis dans huit sacs séparés. valises et paquets de cannabis. Un certain nombre de bagages avaient été enregistrés au nom de ses enfants, qui voyageaient avec lui. Au total, plus de 158 kilos de cannabis ont été saisis,
The men were detained on suspicion of conspiracy to import class A drugs at around 8.30am yesterday (4 May) in Lelley, East Riding of Yorkshire, following a NCA operation which was supported by Humberside Police, the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Organised Crime Unit and Border Force.
It follows the seizure of around 500 kilos of cocaine found in the back of a Vauxhall Vivaro van in the car park of the Stags Head Inn.
It is believed that the drugs had been transferred from a larger vessel sailing off the coast of Hull using a RHIB a few hours before. The smaller boat was found abandoned on rocks at Easington Beach.
The men remain in custody and are now being questioned by NCA investigators. They are a 22-year-old from Argyll, a 32-year-old from Oban, a 24-year-old from Campbeltown and a 39-year-old from Colombia.
NCA Senior Investigating Officer Alan French said: “This was a significant amount of cocaine and its seizure will be a sizeable blow to the organised crime group which attempted to smuggle it into the UK.
“There’s no doubt these drugs would have been sold into communities around the UK, fuelling further crime and exploitation.
“Working with our law enforcement partners we are determined to do all we can to disrupt criminal activity, and protect the UK’s border security.
“Our investigation continues following these arrests.”
Update:
Four men arrested by the National Crime Agency on Saturday following the seizure of around 500 kilos of cocaine in Humberside have now been charged with the importation of class A drugs.
They are:
Anthony McAllister, aged 32, of Aldersyde, Taynuilt
Daniel Livingstone, aged 24, of Calton Avenue, Campbeltown
Mark Moran, aged 22, of Glenfyne Terrace, Ardrishaig
Didier Javier Tordecilla Reyes, aged 39, Colombian national of no fixed abode
All four are expected to appear before Hull Magistrates later today (Monday 7 May).
A high-ranking member of an organised crime group (OCG) that trafficked heroin and cocaine has been convicted following his extradition by the National Crime Agency.
Stephen Earle, 52, of Huyton, Merseyside, was arrested by the Polícia Judiciária Fugitive Team in Faro in January this year at the request of the NCA, and returned to the UK on 18 March.
He had travelled abroad in July 2020, and remained in the country to avoid capture after NCA officers apprehended fellow OCG members in March 2021.
Earle worked closely with his cousin Terence Earle, 50, who was jailed for 16-and-a-half years in April last year. The pair used the encrypted communications platform EncroChat to run the criminal enterprise, with the help of subordinates Stanley Feerick, 70, and Stephen King, 50. Both men have also been sentenced for their part in the class A operation and the creation of an amphetamine lab in Scotland.
Terence and Stephen used the EncroChat handles ‘ThickBoar’ and ‘Octo-hand’ respectively, and discussed prices for buying and selling the drugs as well as the logistics of trafficking.
The pair shipped at least 10 kilos of heroin and seven kilos of cocaine, with the former moved from Merseyside to Motherwell and the latter in the opposite direction.
Stephen Earle pleaded guilty to four drugs supply charges at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday (16 April) and will be sentenced at the same court on 14 June 2024.
The NCA’s investigation formed part of Operation Venetic, the UK NCA-led law enforcement response to the takedown of the EncroChat service in July 2020.
NCA Branch Commander Charles Lee said: “Today’s guilty plea shows that there is no hiding place for criminals who seek to avoid arrest by living abroad.
“The NCA has the international reach to find you and make you pay for your crimes.
“Stephen Earle was an integral part of this dangerous criminal organisation, which posed a serious threat to communities across Scotland and Merseyside.
“The drugs they trafficked would have fuelled violence and exploitation in these areas, so bringing this criminal group to justice has helped protect the public.”
A 41-year-old man who was caught with a car boot full of cocaine at an Essex port has been jailed for 10-and-a-half years following a National Crime Agency investigation.
Rolf Warnars’ Renault Scenic was stopped by Border Force officers at Harwich International Port having travelled by ferry from Hook of Holland, Netherlands.
In the boot of his car was a heavy suitcase that Warnars claimed was packed with clothes for his trip to the UK.
Upon searching the suitcase, officers discovered 42 kilograms of cocaine with an approximate street value of £3.2million.
The drugs were individually wrapped by the kilogram and each package was tagged with a ‘DIOR’ label.
Warnars was arrested for the cocaine importation attempt and the NCA launched an investigation into his criminal activity.
Investigators analysed data held on his mobile phone and discovered he had made four other trips to the UK from June 2023 to when he was arrested at Harwich Port in November 2023.
On each occasion he would arrive into the UK from the Netherlands, stay overnight in a hotel, and return the following day.
Evidence of Warnars’ use of exchange ‘tokens’ was also uncovered on his phone.
Tokens are commonly used in criminal exchanges as a method of verifying the correct recipient of drugs or illicit cash. They often take the form of a bank note serial number and are sent as proof of receipt.
Warnars appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court on 22 April to be sentenced having pleaded guilty to importing class A drugs at an earlier court hearing.
He was sentenced to 10 years and six months imprisonment.
Paul Orchard, NCA Operations Manager, said: “Cocaine supply fuels violence in communities across the UK, with direct links to knife crime and the exploitation of children and vulnerable adults.
“Our investigation evidenced that this wasn’t a one-off for Warnars, as he made several trips in the months before his arrest. The sentence handed down to him should serve as a stark warning to drug suppliers – you will be caught and put before the courts.
“Working closely with our Border Force colleagues and international law enforcement partners, we are committed to dismantling the organised crime groups responsible for importing class A drugs.”
Jenny Sharp, Assistant Director Border Force Central Region, said: « Every drug trafficker caught protects our communities from the destructive influence of illegal drugs.
“Our dedicated Border Force officers are at the forefront of this battle, working tirelessly to prevent these substances from ever reaching our streets.
“This case is another strong example of our unwavering commitment to keeping our borders secure. »
Details can only now be revealed as the final member of the crime group was found guilty of drug importation charges on 3 April following a five-week trial.
Kevin Smith, 38, was detained by officers from the NCA’s Anti-Corruption Unit at work in Portsmouth on 26 August 2023, as part of a joint operation with the Metropolitan Police Service and Border Force.
Earlier that day Smith had allowed Caprice Thompson, 46, from Brixton to pass through his Border Force booth at Portsmouth port, having arrived on a ferry from France.
As she drove back towards London her rental car was stopped by Met officers who recovered 15 kilos of MDMA, with a street value of around £400,000 from the boot of the vehicle.
Two other members of the crime group were also arrested – ringleader David Johnson, 51, and Sinan Baki, 49, both from Clapham. Further drugs were recovered from their properties.
The arrests followed an investigation into the crime group by the Met, who brought in the NCA once it became clear a corrupt insider was in contact with Johnson.
The NCA put Smith under surveillance, and obtained CCTV evidence that the former prison officer engaged in a number of face to face meetings in Portsmouth with Johnson in the run-up to the smuggling attempt.
Smith and Johnson’s relationship had started whilst Smith was working as a prison officer in the prison where Johnson was serving a sentence for drugs importation.
Following Smith’s arrest NCA officers also recovered a mobile phone which he had used to exchange encrypted messages with Johnson.
Johnson pleaded guilty to importing class A drugs, and Smith admitted a charge of misconduct in a public office.
Thompson was found guilty by a jury of drug importation charges and Baki had previously pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply class A.
All four will be sentenced on Friday 7 June.
Dave Rock from the NCA’s Anti-Corruption Unit said:“Tackling insider threat and corruption at the border is a priority for the NCA and our partners because it threatens the security of the public.
“Kevin Smith sought to use his privileged access and knowledge of systems and processes to aid this crime group who were able to bring large amounts of class A into the UK unchecked.
“This operation demonstrated co-operation in action with the NCA Anti-Corruption Unit, MPS and Border Force officers working together to prevent these drugs reaching the criminal market.”
Detective Inspector Lydia Stephens of the Metropolitan Police Specialist Crime Command said: “These individuals were heavily involved in the large-scale supply of Class A drugs in London that severely impacts our communities, drives violence and can lead to children being criminally exploited across the city.
“Apprehending them successfully is the result of months of hard work and dedication on the part of a team of highly skilled Met detectives, supported by colleagues from the National Crime Agency and Border Force.
“We are committed to bringing organised crime groups to justice and making London safer.”
A man responsible for smuggling hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of cocaine into the UK via Birmingham Airport has been jailed.
Border Force officers carrying out checks on incoming passengers x-rayed his luggage, and found nine rectangular packages inside his suitcase. Eight contained high purity cocaine, in total weighing around 8.25 kilos.
Tasco Lambert, 46, from Hall Green in Birmingham, became the subject of a National Crime Agency investigation in August 2023 after he was detained following his arrival on a flight from Montego Bay.
If adulterated and sold the cocaine would have had a street value of around £660,000.
The ninth package contained around 100g of herbal cannabis.
Lambert denied responsibility for the drugs being in his baggage, claiming he’d been to Jamaica for a last minute holiday with a friend.
NCA investigators were able to identify a further three trips made by Lambert to Jamaica in 2022 and 2023, two from Manchester and one from Gatwick.
Lambert denied importing class A and B drugs, but on Friday 16 February, following a four day trial, a jury at Birmingham Crown Court found him guilty of both offences. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison today, 27 March.
In 2001, he was convicted and sentenced to 18 months in prison after being caught smuggling cannabis into Heathrow.
NCA branch operations manager Paul Boniface said:
“Tasco Lambert was a professional drug smuggler who thought he could beat the system.
“He didn’t learn his lesson following his first conviction, and now he’ll serve a significant period of time in prison for this latest offence.
“Working with law enforcement partners like Border Force we are determined to do all we can to disrupt the organised crime gangs involved in drug supply, and that includes targeting couriers like Lambert who are crucial to their business models.”
Phillip Holiday, Regional Director, Border Force said:
“Our Border Force officers played a pivotal role in detecting and seizing thousands of pounds worth of cocaine which ensured that this dangerous criminal was arrested and brought to justice.
“We remain committed to stopping dangerous drugs from entering the country and continue to work relentlessly to keep the public safe and our borders secure.”
Ketamine with an estimated street value of £1.4 million has been recovered from a fishing boat in Suffolk and five men have been arrested after a National Crime Agency investigation.
NCA officers arrested Richard Saul, 41, of Woodbridge, and two others on a boat in the River Deben in Suffolk after they allegedly offloaded a number of boxes from the vessel into a waiting car at a dock in Ramsholt, Suffolk in the early hours of Saturday morning (17 February).
The boxes were then taken to a storage unit in Rendlesham, Suffolk. When investigators searched the unit, 200 kilos of ketamine was discovered inside.
A further two men, Sean Seymour, 58, of Beech Road, Saxmundham, and Domenic Labella, 19, of Beaconsfield Road, Ipswich, who are alleged to have transported the drugs, were arrested.
The boat is alleged to have travelled from Amsterdam to the Suffolk dock for the purpose of importing drugs.
NCA investigators worked closely with Dutch partners to monitor the boat, named MFV Girl Carole, as it left the Netherlands before interdicting as it left the dock. A deactivated shotgun was also found on the vessel. A further amount of cannabis was found at both Labella and Seymour’s home addresses.
Richard Saul, Sean Seymour and Domenic Labella were charged with being concerned in the importation of controlled drugs, being concerned in the supply of controlled drugs and possession with intent to supply controlled drugs.
They appeared at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court on Monday and were bailed until their next hearing at Ipswich Crown Court on 18 March.
Two others arrested on the boat were released on bail.
NCA Branch Commander Ty Surgeon said:
“The discovery of these drugs is the result of a painstaking and long running investigation into the trafficking of drugs through international waters into the UK.
“It is another fantastic example of the NCA working with partners, including the Dutch police and Prosecutor’s office, to tackle the upstream overseas drugs trade and stop the importation of a huge amount of ketamine we believe was destined for the streets of the UK.
“Anyone who thinks they can smuggle drugs into the UK should know that we will do everything at our disposal to stop your endeavours and protect the public.”
L’absence de transparence, serait-ce l’habitude à Montreuil au siège de la Direction générale de la Douane ?
Qu’est ce qu’il en pense Michel Baron, le Chef du bureau Politique du dédouanement ?
Durant plus de trente ans, la direction régionale des douanes de Dunkerque a en effet encaissé des montagnes de taxes auxquelles elle ne pouvait prétendre, lésant ainsi le fisc britannique.
Les 71 millions d’euros de préjudice des douanes françaises font pschitt !
Les douanes françaises réclamaient quelque 71 millions d’euros de pénalité à une dizaine de prévenus dans une affaire de fraude aux accises – une taxe douanière sur l’alcool – dans un trafic entre le Calaisis et l’Angleterre.
« Des camions virtuels mais bien réels »
Au centre du délit, l’utilisation d’un même document administratif électronique (DAE), essentiel pour les douanes, car il leur permet de suivre la marchandise soumise aux accises. Mais « à partir d’un seul DAE, il y avait plusieurs transports virtuels vers l’Angleterre et un seul réel », soulignait le ministère public le 18 janvier, lors du procès en appel à Douai, devant le tribunal correctionnel. « Une fraude d’ampleur » estimée à 71 millions d’euros par les douanes françaises. Mais, en première instance à Lille, en février 2023, devant la juridiction interrégionale spécialisée (JIRS), les douanes françaises avaient été déboutées, et le préjudice global estimé à 71 millions d’euros, avait été ramené à des pénalités douanières de 750 euros par prévenu. En appel, « on est entre 500 euros pour les prévenus les moins impliqués et jusqu’à 1 000 euros pour les plus concernés, indique Me Lebas, avocat lillois de la défense. On passe de 71 millions à 500 euros, c’est un camouflet pour les douanes ».
Pour les avocats de la défense, le vrai préjudice est du côté des douanes britanniques « qui ont perdu ces droits d’accise. Cette taxe sert à compenser les ravages de l’alcool dans leur pays. Là-bas, c’est un problème de santé publique, lance Me Pannier, conseil d’un prévenu.
Au cours du procès en appel, l’avocat martelait « une absence de transparence des douanes françaises pour monter des dossiers ». « Des accusations graves, sans preuves », dénonçait le ministère public dans un procès où « la cour d’appel a définitivement condamné les douanes dans leurs velléités, estime Me Scemama, avocat d’un prévenu. On leur a dit “vous êtes recevables car des droits n’ont pas été acquittés en France, mais les 71 millions que vous demandez ne sont pas justifiés”. »
The drugs were discovered in a car being driven through the Channel Tunnel terminal in Coquelles, France, on its way to the UK in September 2023.
Border Force officers recovered 78 kilos of drugs from a specially constructed hide under the driver’s seat.
The driver of the vehicle, 23-year-old Lewis Krawciw from Whitwell in Derbyshire was arrested and charged with importing class A drugs. He remains remanded in custody and due in court at a future date.
Early this morning (8 February) NCA officers raided a house in Emmett Carr Lane, Renishaw, Derbyshire, and arrested a 37-year-old man suspected of organising the smuggling attempt.
At the same time officers also raided a separate property in Church Warsop, Nottinghamshire. No arrests were made there, but a 26-year-old man later handed himself in at a police station in Nottinghamshire and was arrested on suspicion of drug importation offences.
Both are now being questioned by investigators and searches are continuing.
NCA senior investigating officer Richard Bowen said:
“Today’s operation was the latest phase of an investigation into a significant drug importation that would have netted millions in criminal profit, had it got through.
“Working with partners like Border Force we are determined to do all we can to stem the supply of illegal drugs, and disrupt and dismantle the criminal networks involved in their distribution.
Two men from London have become the fifteenth and sixteenth members of a £100m+ money laundering network to be convicted, following a major National Crime Agency investigation into cash smuggling from the UK to the UAE.
Guilty verdicts were returned yesterday (11 January) on Ali Al-Nawab, 40, from Golders Green, London, and Mehdi Amrollahbibiyouki, 41, from Finchley, London, following a three-week trial at Isleworth Crown Court.
They were part of a network which smuggled more than £104 million during 83 separate London to Dubai trips between November 2019 and October 2020.
The criminal conspiracy was overseen by ringleader Abdullah Alfalasi, 48, who was jailed for more than nine years in July 2022.
Pictured: Mehdi Amarollahibiyouki (left) and Ali Al-Nawab (right)
Adrian Searle, Director of the National Economic Crime Centre in the NCA, said: “The money carried in these suitcases was directly linked to the harm and violence associated with organised crime.
“The very purpose of organised crime is to make money. By going after it and those who launder it, we are targeting the heart of the criminal business model.
“Those involved will now rightly also realise the consequences for them personally – a criminal conviction.”
Evidence gathered from Alfalasi’s phone showed that Al-Nawab and Amrollahbibiyouki both worked as cash couriers.
The couriers, who were paid up to £5,000 for each trip and would be booked on business class flights due to the extra luggage allowance, communicated on a number of WhatsApp groups including one named ’Sunshine and lollipops’.
Amrollahbibiyouki, who was arrested at his home address in April last year, made three trips to Dubai in February and March 2020, checking in 12 suitcases containing £4.3 million. Evidence on his phones revealed that he had also been responsible for counting and packaging criminal cash totalling £11.1 million for eight trips made by couriers, including the ones he made himself.
Al-Nawab was arrested in May 2022 as he was leaving the UK to travel to Turkey. He made two journeys in March 2020, checking in nine suitcases containing £3.2 million.
The network collected cash from criminal groups around the UK, which was believed to be the profits of drug dealing, and took it to counting houses, usually rented apartments in Central London.
The money was then vacuum packed and separated into suitcases which would typically each contain around £400,000, weighing around 40 kilos. They were sprayed with coffee or air fresheners in an effort to prevent them being found by Border Force detection dogs.
NCA senior investigating officer Ian Truby said: “Al-Nawab and Amrollahbibiyouki were part of an industrial-scale money laundering operation that saw huge amounts of criminal cash smuggled out of the UK.
“Their convictions mark a further dismantlement of this prolific and extensive criminal network.
“Our investigation will not cease until all those involved are brought before the courts and made accountable for their crimes.”
Al-Nawab and Amrollahbibiyouki were convicted yesterday (11 January) and are due to be sentenced at the same court on 8 March.
Fourteen other couriers have been convicted previously.
The NCA investigation has been supported by Border Force and the UAE authorities. A number of British couriers are under investigation in the UAE and cannot leave until inquiries have been completed by UAE law enforcement.
Two cocaine dealers – one of whom also hid £100,000 in cash inside a flat – have been jailed for a total of almost eight years.
Officers from the Organised Crime Partnership – a joint National Crime Agency and Metropolitan Police Service unit – investigated Albanian nationals Orest Malushi, 44, from Barnet, and Olsian Vogli, 31, from Birmingham.
The pair were arrested beside Malushi’s car in Hendon, north London, in July last year by OCP officers who had them under surveillance.
Vogli had been seen entering and leaving a flat on Caversham Road that he used as a stash house shortly before the arrest.
OCP officers searched a black rucksack he was carrying, which contained half a kilo of cocaine.
They also found three mobile phones and a further two-and-a-half kilos of cocaine which had been hidden inside a specially adapted hide in the glovebox of Malushi’s car.
More than £100,000 in cash and a mobile phone with several SIM cards were found after the apartment was searched.
Malushi and Vogli pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine with intent to supply during previous hearings at St Albans Crown Court, and were sentenced to two years and six months and five years and four months respectively at Harrow Crown Court (sitting at Willesden Magistrates’ Court) yesterday (9 January).
Andrew Tickner, from the Organised Crime Partnership, said:
“The cocaine supplied by Olsian Vogli and Orest Malushi was clearly generating large profits for the organised crime group they belonged to, as shown by the amount of cash we found in the apartment.
“The hide in Malushi’s car was ultimately a futile attempt to conceal his criminality, but shows the time and attention that drug suppliers will put into their criminal profession.
“The class A drugs trade fuels gang violence and suffering in the UK, which is why the NCA and Met Police’s strong partnership is at the forefront of dismantling the organised criminal groups behind it.”
Their convictions follow a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation that led to NCA and Border Force officers discovering the drugs haul inside a shipping container at Tilbury Docks, Essex.
Seemingly realising the drugs were missing, they all then fled the site in different cars, abandoning the load shortly after the container was opened.
The trio were all on board a plane which flew in from Montego Bay in Jamaica and landed at Heathrow on Monday evening.
The NCA’s investigation formed part of Operation Venetic, the UK NCA-led law enforcement response to the takedown of the EncroChat service in July 2020.
Rolf Warnars’ Renault Scenic was stopped by Border Force officers at Harwich International Port having travelled by ferry from Hook of Holland, Netherlands.
Tasco Lambert, 46, from Hall Green in Birmingham, became the subject of a National Crime Agency investigation in August 2023 after he was detained following his arrival on a flight from Montego Bay.
The drugs were discovered in a car being driven through the Channel Tunnel terminal in Coquelles, France, on its way to the UK in September 2023.
AVISEUR INTERNATIONAL 