Gang used fishing boat to smuggle £1.4m of ketamine

Two members of gang of drug smugglers who brought £1.4m of ketamine up a Suffolk river using a fishing boat have been jailed.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) tracked the vessel Girl Carole, which had travelled from Amsterdam and up the River Deben estuary near Felixstowe, while other officers waited on land at Ramsholt in February 2024.

Five men pleaded guilty to various offences at the start of their trial at Ipswich Crown Court on Thursday.

Richard Saul, 43, of Mill Lane, Woodbridge, Suffolk, was jailed for eight years, while Sean Seymour, 60, of Beech Road, Saxmundham, Suffolk, was given four years and two months. Three others were given suspended jail sentences.

Ingrid Watson, regional head of investigations at the NCA, said the gang tried to operate under the "cover of darkness" but were arrested in the early hours of 17 February.

"Little did they know, their crimes were being watched," she said.

"Richard Saul was the ringleader of the group, boasting about his extensive criminal enterprise and how easy he believed it was to smuggle drugs with his associates."

On the same morning in 2024, Seymour picked up Domenic Labella, of Ipswich, before driving to the isolated jetty at Ramsholt, where the vessel arrived at 04:18 GMT.

The pair collected boxes containing 200kg (441lb) of ketamine and 10kg (22lb) of cannabis, which they took to a unit on an industrial estate in nearby Rendlesham.

They were arrested before the three others were detained on the boat by the Maritime Counter Terrorism Specialist Firearms Unit, which also found a deactivated shotgun onboard.

All five of the men were charged with being concerned with the importation of controlled drugs.

Labella, 21, of Beaconsfield Road in Ipswich, and Nathan Wellard, 55, of Thetford Road, Northwold, Norfolk, were each given a two-year jail sentence, suspended for 18 months, and 100 hours of unpaid work

Alexander Sampson-Chambers, 36, of Gipsy Road, Welling, in south-east London, was also given a two-year jail sentence, suspended for 18 months, with 150 hours of unpaid work.

Saul, Seymour, and Labella were also sentenced for being concerned in the supply of controlled drugs and possession with intent to supply controlled drugs.

"Ketamine usage has increased in the UK, and users should be aware of the horrific physical and mental damage it causes," added Watson.

"The NCA will continue to work with partners overseas to stop drugs reaching the streets of the UK and keep criminal groups like this one off the streets."

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