Four men have been charged after a fishing boat carrying one tonne of cocaine, estimated to be worth £100 million, was intercepted off the coast of Britain.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) made the arrests following the seizure of the large drug haul when Border Force officers stopped the vessel at sea off the coast of Newquay, Cornwall, on the afternoon of Friday, September 13.
The suspects, Michael Kelly, 45, from Portway, Manchester; Jon Paul Williams, 46, from St Thomas, Swansea; Patrick Godfrey, 30, from Port Tennant, Swansea; and Jake Marchant, 26, with no fixed address, have been charged with importing a controlled Class A drug.
All four men have been remanded in custody and are set to appear at Bodmin Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
Derek Evans, NCA Branch Commander, commented: “This is a significant seizure that represents a major loss for the organized crime group attempting to import the cocaine into the UK.
“Working with our partners at Border Force and the Joint Maritime Security Centre, we have successfully removed this dangerous drug from the criminal market. Its distribution could have exacerbated county lines exploitation, serious violence, and knife crime.”
He added: “Our investigation into this importation is ongoing.”
