Drugs smugglers in Jersey jailed for £900k haul
- Published
The siezure included MDMA powder, ecstasy tablets, cannabis and cocaine
A group of smugglers who attempted to import drugs valued at £900,000 into Jersey have been jailed.
Border agents intercepted a 37ft yacht carrying cannabis, MDMA and cocaine off the coast of the island last June.
It arrived in St Catherine's Bay from England, and was found to have 5kg of cannabis, 2kg of MDMA, 2kg of ecstasy and 1kg of cocaine on board.
Six men and a woman involved in the failed plot admitted drugs offences at Jersey's Royal Court.
They were given sentences ranging from two to 14 years in jail.
The drugs were seized by border agents as part of Operation Lion in June 2019
The joint operation lasted almost eighteen months with local Police and Customs officers working alongside colleagues from the National Crime Agency, UK Border Force and Australian Police, officers said.
Gang members Daniel Riley, Nicholas Thurban, Paul Brown, Colin Sait, Jon Hughes, Deborah Wolff and John Alexander Roy were given the following jail sentences:
Thurban, 61, from England - 13 years and six months
Sait, 45, from England - 12 years
Brown 59, from England - 12 years
Roy, 55, an Australian national originally from Scotland, 12 years
Hughes, 41, from England - 14 years and three months
Riley, 26, from Jersey - eight years and two months
Wolff, 54, from England - two years
Jersey Police described the case, known as Operation Lion, as "one of the most complex drug-related investigations ever undertaken by Jersey law enforcement agencies", with several months of surveillance spanning several jurisdictions.