Overview
- The 12 defendants were sentenced at Portsmouth Crown Court on November 5 and 6, 2026 to a combined total of more than 100 years in prison, with ringleaders Daniel Jamieson jailed for 22 years and Sam Brown for 16 years and six months.
- Investigators traced about 500kg of cocaine, each bale at roughly 85% purity, to a scheme that saw drugs dumped at sea and then brought ashore on August 19, 2024 when NCA officers intercepted 16 waterproof, GPS‑fitted bales on Medmerry Beach.
- Prosecutors say the plot used maritime trade cover and a rigid‑hulled inflatable boat to recover the cargo; Jamieson bought a maritime business under a false name to obtain the boat while Lewis Watts ran funding and gave WhatsApp directions to crews at sea.
- Lower‑level members who helped land the drugs received shorter or suspended terms, and a key offender, Carl Powner, who fled abroad, was arrested in Romania, extradited and jailed as part of the sentences.
- The NCA said the seizure denied the organised crime group drugs and profits and pledged to continue work with Border Force and police partners to protect communities and disrupt similar maritime smuggling methods.