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Smugglers jailed over £62m plot Smugglers jailed over £62m plot
(20 minutes later)
A gang of 12 men who smuggled £62m worth of skunk cannabis in flower boxes from Holland into the UK have been jailed at Southwark Crown Court.A gang of 12 men who smuggled £62m worth of skunk cannabis in flower boxes from Holland into the UK have been jailed at Southwark Crown Court.
The ringleader Terrence Bowler, 40, of Kingston, was jailed for 16 years. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import controlled drugs and money laundering.The ringleader Terrence Bowler, 40, of Kingston, was jailed for 16 years. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import controlled drugs and money laundering.
The drugs were smuggled through ports in Essex and Hull and stored in garages in south-west London and Surrey.The drugs were smuggled through ports in Essex and Hull and stored in garages in south-west London and Surrey.
The gang made £20m profit bringing in 88 shipments of cannabis.The gang made £20m profit bringing in 88 shipments of cannabis.
'Board meetings''Board meetings'
Sentencing Bowler, Judge Gregory Stone QC said: "You are described as a senior controlling figure in the criminal group.Sentencing Bowler, Judge Gregory Stone QC said: "You are described as a senior controlling figure in the criminal group.
"You attended regular 'board meetings' to plan the operations, you were seen to brief new recruits to the organisation, you rented the premises to store drugs and others to store cash.""You attended regular 'board meetings' to plan the operations, you were seen to brief new recruits to the organisation, you rented the premises to store drugs and others to store cash."
Two other "directors", Peter Moran, 37, of Fulham, west London, and Mark Kinnimont, 40, of Surbiton, south-west London, admitted the same charges as Bowler.Two other "directors", Peter Moran, 37, of Fulham, west London, and Mark Kinnimont, 40, of Surbiton, south-west London, admitted the same charges as Bowler.
The gang stored cannabis in lock-up garages
Moran and Kinnimont were each handed 14-year sentences.Moran and Kinnimont were each handed 14-year sentences.
Liam Salter, 39, of Tadworth, Surrey, David Couchman, 38, of Southwark, south London, and Timothy Sullivan, 38, of Epsom, Surrey, formed the next tier in the hierarchy.Liam Salter, 39, of Tadworth, Surrey, David Couchman, 38, of Southwark, south London, and Timothy Sullivan, 38, of Epsom, Surrey, formed the next tier in the hierarchy.
All three pleaded guilty to the same charges as the ringleader.All three pleaded guilty to the same charges as the ringleader.
Salter and Sullivan were jailed for seven years each while Couchman was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison.Salter and Sullivan were jailed for seven years each while Couchman was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison.
The gang was under surveillance for 14 months, between August 2007 and November 2008, during which time they changed their smuggling route after police seized one consignment.
Money 'went mouldy'
The gang initially smuggled the cannabis through a ferry port in Harwich, Essex, and stored the goods at a warehouse in Chatham, Kent.
After police intercepted a £750,000 consignment in July 2008, the gang changed their route.
They shipped the drugs to Hull, storing them in a warehouse in Leeds temporarily.
They then transported them to lock-up garages in Kingston, Worcester Park, Epsom and Ashtead, where the skunk cannabis was unpacked and stored.
Mouldy money found in a safe in Kingston
In two years, the gang smuggled in 88 shipments, almost 250kg (551lb) of the highly potent cannabis strain.
The gang kept no records of any transactions and so much cash was coming in that they forgot £60,000, which went mouldy in an underground safe in a garage in Kingston.
Police believe much of the laundered money was wired to accounts in Pakistan and Dubai.
The judge added: "The conspirators took care that the money and drugs were never together. I heard expert evidence that this was a deliberate decision so that, in the event of a police raid, the conspirators would not lose the money and drugs at once."
He also said that the extent of the money laundering operation was such that some of the concealed cash may never be recovered by police.