Gang who tried to STEAL £80m of cocaine from a lorry while its driver stopped for a coffee are jailed for 47 years
The grey Transit van the gang used to load cocaine from the hijacked lorry, later abandoned and found by Northamptonshire Police within two hours with 11 more holdalls inside.Michael Weston (left) and Craig Le-Mare (right), in police custody photographs, were jailed for 12 years nine months and 20 years respectively at the Old Bailey for their roles in the plot.
Craig Le-Mare, 36, got 20 years at the Old Bailey, Kelly Robertson, 46, 15 years and Michael Weston, 57, 12 years and nine months for a plot that saw them trail the lorry 125 miles in three cars until its driver pulled into a Northampton layby. They blocked it, broke into the container and loaded holdalls from a 780kg haul, hidden among steel furniture parts shipped from Mexico, into a Transit van before bystanders spotted them and they fled, leaving seven holdalls behind.
Met Detective Inspector Dean Grafton said the gang 'hoped to make millions by selling cocaine across the UK'
Fleeing, the gang switched cars, changed number plates and falsely reported their own Transit van as stolen
Northamptonshire Police found the abandoned van within two hours, recovering 11 more holdalls, 18 in all
