A man from Dorset who imported kilos of cocaine into the UK from Jamaica concealed within bottles of liquids has been jailed.

Robert Theophelus Smith aged 46 of Soberton Road, Bournemouth, was sentenced on Friday (11 April) at Bournemouth Crown Court following an investigation by the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU).

Smith came to the attention of law enforcement in March 2024 following the interception of a parcel by UK Border Force at Stansted Airport. The package, which had been sent from Jamaica, contained eight plastic bottles labelled as juice and syrups and an assortment of food items and was destined for an address in Studland Road in Bournemouth.

When tested, the eight bottles of liquid – four 1 litre bottles and four 750ml bottles - confirmed the presence of cocaine. Through a process where it’s separated from the liquid, it was established that 5.5 kilos of cocaine could be retrieved from this shipment.

Smith was able to collect the package from the Studland Road address without arousing suspicion as he legitimately worked for as a delivery driver for a national company and was driving a liveried van and wearing the company uniform.

Officers from SWROCU’s Regional Disruption Team (RDT) supported by Dorset Police, arrested Smith once he had collected the package.

Further investigations showed he had arranged the importation and collection of a further two packages between January and March 2024, which would have contained up to 20 kilos of cocaine once extracted from the liquid. Smith also admitted that he was due to receive further packages in the coming months.

Smith pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and the importation of a class A drug and was sentenced to four years and eight months behind bars.

DS Stuart Cumine of the RDT said: “We took prompt action following the intelligence provided by our Border Force colleagues to identify, apprehend and charge Smith, which would not have been possible without the assistance of officers from Dorset Police.

“This is a serious importation of high purity class A drugs which we know cause misery and harm in our communities. Smith is no longer able to facilitate the movement of significant quantities of cocaine and we have been able to disrupt further illegal importations by this novel method.”

Robert Smith

 

The contents of the package intercepted by UK Border Force