A gang of smugglers caught with cocaine worth more than £18 million have been jailed after a dramatic sea chase off the coast of Cornwall. Three men were arrested last September after their boat ran aground near Penzance following a 28-mile pursuit by Border Force officers.
They had been trying to bring around 230kg of high-purity cocaine into the UK using a rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB), believed to have collected the drugs from a larger ship out at sea. During the chase, the suspects were seen throwing large packages overboard in an attempt to get rid of the evidence. Six bales were later recovered from the water and confirmed to contain cocaine.
The three men on board – Peter Williams and Scott Johnston from Havant, and Edwin Yahir Tabora Baca from Barcelona – tried to flee on foot after their vessel hit the shore, but were quickly caught and arrested.
Following the arrests, the National Crime Agency (NCA) launched a wider investigation and identified four more men connected to the plot.
Officers used CCTV footage, mobile phone data, and text messages to uncover their involvement.
Those convicted include Alex Fowlie from Chichester, Bobbie Pearce and Michael May from Brentwood, and Terry Willis from Chelmsford.
The NCA said the men helped organise the pick-up and delivery of the drugs and were waiting on land to collect the cocaine.
Audio recordings found on Fowlie’s phone revealed he was already planning more pick-ups just days after the arrests, with one message boasting about collecting “up to one tonne” of drugs with “zero risk”.
All seven men were charged with conspiracy to import Class A drugs. Five admitted the charge, while Johnston and May were found guilty following a trial at Truro Crown Court in June.
Johnston, 38, was sentenced to 24 years. Willis, 44, received 21 years and eight months, May, 47, was jailed for 19 years, and Tabora Baca, 33, was given 17 years and seven months.
Williams, 43, and Pearce, 29, will be sentenced on August 21. Fowlie, 35, will appear in court on September 5.
Willis also admitted to money laundering and having a revolver and ammunition at his home.
The NCA’s Barry Vinall said the smugglers were only motivated by profit and showed no regard for the harm drugs cause.
Border Force’s Duncan Capps praised officers for their skill during the chase and said they will continue working to stop dangerous drugs from reaching UK streets.