Over a tonne of cocaine, worth £80 million, was found and seized from a fishing trawler docked in Falmouth in Cornwall.
Described as “one of the most significant drugs seizures ever made in the UK”, officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Border Force Maritime raided the vessel named Bianca on Thursday, in which 50 bags of the drug was discovered.
Director of the Border Force’s national operations Mike Stepney said, “This is one of the most significant drugs seizures ever made in the UK.” He continues, “by working closely with the NCA and other partners, we were able to intercept this vessel before it could deliver its £80m cargo to the UK.”
The crew protecting the drugs, including the owner of the boat Michael McDermott, 67, Gerald Van De Krooij, 26, and David Pleasants, 57, have all been charged and are due for a court hearing on 20th September.
Mark Harding, from NCA’s Border Policing Command, said: “A seizure on this scale is likely have a significant disruptive impact right along the supply chain, leaving criminals with large debts to be covered.
“And it will have knock-on effects, disrupting further criminality that would have been funded by the profits of this venture.”