Former Love Island contestant Magdalena Sadlo has been jailed for 14 years after helping run a global drug smuggling ring. She acted as financial controller for a cartel moving cocaine and other drugs from the Middle East to the UK.
Magdalena Sadlo jailed for major drug smuggling role Read More »
The final member of an organised crime group that orchestrated a sophisticated plot to smuggle 448 kilograms of MDMA to Australia has been sentenced to 23 years in prison. William Sartin, 63, was convicted for his role in the criminal operation following an investigation by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA). Sartin joins six co-conspirators—Danny Brown, Stefan Baldauf, Peter Murray, Tony Borg, Leon Reilly, and Philip Lawson—who were sentenced for their involvement in 2022. The smuggling network was dismantled through Operation Venetic, a UK-wide initiative that targeted criminals using the encrypted messaging platform EncroChat. Sophisticated Smuggling Plot The group concealed the MDMA within the arm of an industrial digger, a Doosan DX420, which they purchased for €75,000. The digger was first stored at an industrial unit in Grays, Essex, under Sartin’s control. The drugs were hidden behind a lead lining in the excavator’s arm, a concealment designed by co-conspirator Philip Lawson, who arranged for a welder to modify the machinery. To give the shipment an air of legitimacy, the group organised an online auction for the excavator’s arrival in Australia. The digger was transported from Leeds by Reilly’s company, Mizen Equipment, and later shipped to Brisbane, Australia, via Southampton Docks. Australian Border Force officers intercepted the shipment, x-rayed the machinery, removed the drugs, and resealed the arm to allow the delivery to proceed under surveillance. International Cooperation The digger arrived at an auction house in Brisbane before being transported to a site west of Sydney in May 2020. The Australian criminal group intended to retrieve the drugs but was unable to locate them, prompting confusion and frustration. EncroChat messages revealed that the UK conspirators launched their own investigation, holding meetings attended by Sartin to determine what went wrong. The NCA worked closely with the Australian Federal Police to monitor and disrupt the operation. The collaborative effort prevented the MDMA, which would have commanded a far higher price in Australia than in the UK, from reaching the streets. Operation Venetic and Sartin’s Conviction Operation Venetic uncovered critical evidence against the group, including messages sent via EncroChat. One pivotal clue was an image sent by Danny Brown of his pet dog “Bob,” whose tag displayed a phone number, inadvertently leading investigators to his partner. Sartin, who operated under the EncroChat handles “haplessbadger” and “urbanmallet,” was previously convicted for smuggling cannabis and tobacco. His industrial unit was central to the conspiracy, serving as the site where the digger was modified and filled with drugs. Sentencing Sartin at Kingston Crown Court on December 3, NCA Branch Commander Chris Hill said: “Sartin played a vital role in this conspiracy; it was in his industrial unit that the excavator was concealed, cut open, and filled with MDMA. “Our work with partners abroad, shown here through our collaboration with the Australian Federal Police, protects the public from the dangers of Class A drugs, which destroy lives and communities here in the UK and across the world.” A Major Blow to Organised Crime This case marks the conclusion of a highly complex investigation that spanned two continents and involved multiple law enforcement agencies. Operation Venetic continues to serve as a blueprint for tackling organised crime, leveraging international partnerships and advanced investigative techniques to disrupt criminal networks. The sentencing of Sartin and his co-conspirators underscores the NCA’s commitment to dismantling drug trafficking operations and protecting communities from the devastating impact of Class A drugs. 3 December 2024
EncroChat Investigation: 448 Kilos of MDMA Hidden in Digger Foiled Read More »
A federal court in the Central District of California unsealed a criminal complaint yesterday charging Cristian Fernando Gutierrez-Ochoa — a high-ranking member of the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and the son-in-law of the CJNG’s leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as El Mencho — with international drug trafficking and money laundering offenses. Gutierrez-Ochoa was arrested in Riverside, California, on Nov. 19. “The Jalisco Cartel — one of the world’s most violent and prolific drug trafficking organizations — is weaker today because of the tenacious efforts of law enforcement to track down and arrest a cartel leader who allegedly faked his own death and assumed a false identity to evade justice and live a life of luxury in California,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “As these charges allege, Gutierrez-Ochoa directed the trafficking of lethal narcotics, causing untold destruction in our communities. To those seeking to harm Americans and to profit from their pain, this arrest should serve as a reminder — we will find you and bring you to justice.” “Over the last decade, Cristian Gutierrez-Ochoa, a close associate of CJNG’s top leader, allegedly directed the importation of tons of methamphetamine and cocaine into the United States and engaged in violence to aid the cartel’s criminal activities,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Criminal Division is committed to disrupting and dismantling Mexican drug trafficking organizations. Tuesday’s arrest sends a powerful message to cartel leadership: we will work tirelessly with our domestic and international law enforcement partners to hold them accountable.” “Defeating the two cartels responsible for the deadly drug crisis in the United States is the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)’s top operational priority, and with the arrest of Cristian Fernando Gutierrez-Ochoa, we are much closer,” said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “We allege that Gutierrez-Ochoa, a high-ranking member of the CJNG and the son-in-law of El Mencho, conspired to import thousands of kilograms of cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States on behalf of the Jalisco Cartel. The Jalisco Cartel is responsible for unprecedented violence in Mexico and helping to fuel the deadly drug crisis in the United States. The DEA is relentlessly committed to defeating the Jalisco Cartel, and we will exhaust every tool in the justice system to fight back, to save American lives, and to bring this cartel to justice.” According to court documents, Gutierrez-Ochoa, 37, is alleged to have started working for the CJNG, one of the most violent drug cartels in Mexico, in around 2014, and to have personally coordinated the transportation and distribution of approximately 40,000 kilograms of methamphetamine and approximately 2,000 kilograms of cocaine in Mexico, all destined for the United States. Gutierrez-Ochoa allegedly furthered CJNG’s drug trafficking and money laundering activities through violence. In around November 2021, Gutierrez-Ochoa allegedly kidnapped two members of the Mexican Navy in an attempt to secure the release of El Mencho’s wife, who had been arrested by Mexican authorities. After being sought by Mexican authorities, Gutierrez-Ochoa allegedly fled into the United States, assumed a fictitious identity, and resided in a luxury residence in Riverside, California, purchased by CJNG’s money laundering operatives with drug trafficking proceeds. According to court documents, El Mencho may have assisted Gutierrez-Ochoa in his scheme to fake his own death by telling associates that El Mencho murdered Gutierrez-Ochoa for lying. This helped Gutierrez-Ochoa sneak into the United States to be with El Mencho’s daughter. The Justice Department returned a superseding indictment against El Mencho in April 2022, charging him with leading a continuing criminal enterprise to manufacture and distribute fentanyl for importation into the United States. The U.S. Department of State is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to his arrest and/or conviction. El Mencho remains a fugitive. Gutierrez-Ochoa is charged with conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, knowing, intending, and having reasonable cause to believe that those controlled substances would be unlawfully imported into the United States. Gutierrez-Ochoa is also charged with conspiracy to launder CJNG’s drug trafficking proceeds. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum penalty of ten years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison on the drug distribution conspiracy charge, and a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the money laundering conspiracy charge. A federal district court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 21 November 2024 Source: Justice Dept
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