Total cocaine smuggling haul worth more than £10m

Cocaine worth more than £10m was being smuggled into the UK when Border Force officers intercepted a boat off the Cornish coast, a court has heard.

Two men have gone on trial at Truro Crown Court for trying to smuggle 230kg of high purity cocaine - but the jury was told the total haul was 380kg with a wholesale value of £10,260,000.

Scott Johnston, 37, of Havant, Hampshire and Michael May, 47, of Kelveden Hatch, Essex, deny a charge of conspiring to smuggle cocaine into the UK.

Five other men have admitted their part in the conspiracy, the court heard.

Prosecutor Frederick Hookway told the court Edwin Tabora Baca, who previously pleaded guilty, had sent images of the drug bales to a contact showing a total of eleven bags - but only six were recovered by the authorities.

He added at least 150kg of cocaine was not recovered after being jettisoned into the sea by three men aboard a Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) that Border Force officers were attempting to intercept.

The three men landed the vessel at Gwynver beach near Sennen and were arrested as they ran up the beach.

One of those men was Mr Johnston, while Mr May was alleged to have been in a van on the Cornish coastline waiting to transport the smuggled drugs - he was arrested later.

The court was told the drugs were brought across the Atlantic on a cargo ship from South America and were dumped into sea in watertight bales.

The bales were fitted with GPS tracking devices attached to Apple air tags so they could be recovered from the sea by a smaller vessel and transported to the coast of Cornwall to be off loaded.

The trial which is due to last two weeks.

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