The Aporia
The Aporia
Pennink, E. (2026, November 4). £80m cocaine plot rumbled after gang took advantage of lorry driver’s tea break. Evening Standard. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/northamptonshire-police-metropolitan-police-northampton-transit-van-mexico-b1303596.html
Pennink, Emily. “£80m cocaine plot rumbled after gang took advantage of lorry driver’s tea break.” Evening Standard, 4 Nov. 2026, https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/northamptonshire-police-metropolitan-police-northampton-transit-van-mexico-b1303596.html.
Pennink, Emily. “£80m cocaine plot rumbled after gang took advantage of lorry driver’s tea break.” Evening Standard, November 4, 2026. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/northamptonshire-police-metropolitan-police-northampton-transit-van-mexico-b1303596.html.
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On November 26, 2021, 78kg of cocaine with a street value of more than £80 million was seized by police after a lorry driver stopped for tea at a roadside burger van in Northamptonshire. Instead of continuing his journey, the driver tipped off authorities who then discovered seven holdalls containing cocaine inside the lorry. The total seizure included 18 holdalls of drugs. Financial records indicated that the shipment had arrived via Felixstowe port on November 12 and the smugglers were in Ipswich on the same day.
Kelly Robertson, Craig Le-Mare, and Michael Weston were arrested in connection with the plot. Le-Mare, who fled to avoid arrest but was apprehended at Gatwick Airport on January 25, 2025, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to supply class A drugs. Robertson received 15 years, and Weston got 12 years and nine months. Assistant Chief Constable Emma James of Northamptonshire Police stated that the discovery led to a significant investigation preventing dangerous drugs from reaching communities across the UK.
