A married couple has been found guilty of smuggling millions of pounds worth of cocaine from the UK to Australia. They are also suspected of arranging to kill their adopted son for an insurance payout. The couple's involvement in the international drugs operation was compared to the plots of American TV crime dramas Ozark and Breaking Bad. They were found guilty of drug smuggling and money laundering charges.
A married couple suspected of arranging to kill their adopted son for an insurance payout have been found guilty of smuggling millions of pounds worth of cocaine from the UK to Australia. Prosecutors compared Arti Dhir, 59, and 35-year-old Kavaljitsinh Raijada's 'pivotal role' in the international drugs operation to the plots of American TV crime dramas Ozark and Breaking Bad.
Australian police intercepted a consignment of half a tonne of cocaine, with a wholesale value of £57m, on a commercial cargo flight at Sydney Airport on 15 May 2021. Southwark Crown Court heard it was one of 15 similar shipments between June 2019 and May 2021, while nearly £3m in cash was also found in a west London storage lock-up linked to the pair. Dhir and Raijada denied involvement but were found guilty of 12 counts of drug smuggling and 18 charges relating to money laundering by a jury. Prosecutor Hugh French told the court: 'It's like something out of Breaking Bad or Ozark,' and described the 'ruthless and greedy' pair as 'very different from the average married couple
Married Couple Smuggling Cocaine Murder Insurance Payout Drugs International Operation TV Crime Dramas Guilty Money Laundering