Authorities have revealed that two men have been sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison for attempting to smuggle cocaine into Britain in cans disguised as baked beans and condensed coconut milk.
According to the Metropolitan Police Service, British nationals Daniel Kelly, 43, and Steven Gilhooly, 43, were sentenced Wednesday at Snaresbrook Crown Court following trials earlier this month.
Kelly was arrested while imprisoned on another charge in January 2020, and Gilhooly was captured two months later. Authorities said everyone was charged in April 2021 with violating Britain’s prohibition on the importation of Class A narcotics into the country in connection with the plan.
Kelly received a sentence of more than six years in jail after pleading guilty, whilst Gilhooly received a term of more than eight years in prison after being found guilty at trial.
An investigation conducted jointly by the Met Police and the National Crime Agency revealed that the duo hatched a plan to smuggle roughly 3 kilograms of cocaine into Britain from the Caribbean island of St. Lucia by concealing the contraband in cans disguised as baked beans and coconut milk.
Customs officers confiscated the cans in December 2018, sparking an investigation that led them to the discovery that Kelly and Gilhooly had traveled to St. Lucia soon before the cans were mailed from there to locations in Charlton and Greenwich in southeast London.
Metropolitan Police Detective Inspector, Matthew Webb, said in a statement, “Both men traveled to St. Lucia with the sole purpose of importing Class A drugs back into the United Kingdom.
“The miserable effect that drugs supply has on our communities is undeniable and inextricably linked to violence within our communities. Both men were willing to take such risk with this offending — thinking they were beyond the reach of the law and hoping to monetize profits.
“Instead, they now face hefty prison sentences. I hope this provides them the opportunity to reflect on their behavior and demonstrates that crime doesn’t pay.”
