Four Men Busted Smuggling £100 Million of Cocaine off Cornwall
Four members of a crime gang have been found guilty of trying to smuggle over £100 million worth of cocaine into the UK. The massive haul—over a tonne of high-purity Class A drugs—was discovered on a fishing boat off the Cornwall coast last September.
Fishing Boat Lily Lola Caught Red-Handed
The smugglers used the fishing vessel Lily Lola, intercepted by Border Force cutter HMC Valiant on 13 September. Officers launched a rapid inflatable boat to board the vessel off Cornwall’s north coast.
Jon Williams, 46, the boat’s skipper who bought the Lily Lola just two months earlier for £140,000, was found at the helm alongside Jake Marchant, 27. Michael Kelly, 45, was in the accommodation area, while Patrick Godfrey, 31, was asleep on deck.
The Border Force escorted the boat to Plymouth Royal Dockyard, where officers confirmed the cocaine’s purity and quantity.
Digital Clues Expose Global Drug Operation
Investigators seized phones with damning evidence. Godfrey’s phone had a message telling someone to “delete everything u see and not show anybody” and searches asking “how long does it take a ship to leave Peru to UK.” Inside the drug bales was a tracker linked to South America, exposing international ties.
Most suspects stayed silent when questioned, but Kelly and Marchant soon caved and pleaded guilty before trial. Williams and Godfrey were found guilty after a trial at Truro Crown Court. All four await sentencing on 8 May.
NCA Praises Major Drug Bust
Derek Evans, NCA branch commander, said: “The NCA and Border Force have stopped a huge cocaine shipment from reaching UK and European streets, protecting countless lives and communities. We’ve smashed a drug supply chain and robbed organised criminals of huge profits. We continue working with partners worldwide to dismantle the international drug trade and bring offenders to justice.”
