A MAN has been jailed for his part in a drugs plot that saw two men leave Southampton water to pick up two tonnes of cocaine.
Thomas Snell, 31, was sentenced today at Southampton Crown Court.
It came after Snell's two accomplices, Edward Duggin, 33, of Norris Way, Buntingford, and Justine Romaraog, 22, of Talfourd Way, Redhill were jailed for 15 years and 11 years respectively in April.
The pair were locked up after they left Southampton Water on September 9 last year aboard the motor cruiser, Bubble E to go and meet a yacht in the English Channel.
They had planned on taking on board two tonnes of cocaine that had been smuggled from South America.
READ MORE: Southampton Water cocaine smugglers are jailed for 26 years
But as a result of a joint operation by the National Crime Agency and UK Border Force, the inbound yacht was stopped and the drugs were seized.
Duggin and Romaraog both pleaded guilty to "fraudulently avoiding the prohibition on the importation of a controlled drug of Class A" and were jailed on April 29.
But now the third man in the plot, Snell, of no fixed address, has been imprisoned for his involvement.
A court heard how the three men had been doing unusual manoeuvres in the Channel close to a South American container ship in October last year.
Traces of white powder were then found on the ship after Border Force boarded Bubble E.
Duggin's mobile phone also showed the use of an encrypted application which indicated the trio's intentions to pick up drugs.
They were all arrested.
Snell was jailed for eight years today at Southampton Crown Court for pleading guilty to the same offence as his accomplices.
Investigating officer, Detective Sergeant Dan Hope, of SEROCU, said: “Thomas Snell has received a significant prison sentence and is the final defendant to be sentenced for his involvement in a plot to import extremely large amounts of cocaine across the English Channel and into the shores of the UK.
“Excellent joint working with the National Crime Agency and UK Border Force ensured that this organised crime group was intercepted at sea.
"This prevented a Class A drug, which has extremely harmful consequences to society, from reaching our streets.
"We continue to work in partnership to relentlessly tackle the threat that serious and organised crime poses in the South-East.”
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