Two Men Slammed with 36 Years for £32M Cocaine Smuggling Plot
£32 Million Cocaine Haul Hidden in Yams
Two London men will spend decades behind bars after the National Crime Agency (NCA) busted their £32 million cocaine smuggling scheme. Juan David Perea Lopez, 26, from New Cross, and Bashar Fares Al-Safee, 31, of North Kensington, conspired to import 400kg of top-quality cocaine concealed inside a shipment of yams from Costa Rica.
On June 4, 2016, NCA and Border Force officers pounced on a refrigerated container at London Gateway Port, Essex. They found fake false bottoms in yam boxes hiding compressed blocks of cocaine – weighing in with 61% to 68% purity and laced with Levamisole, a livestock dewormer often added to bulk up the drug.
Catch at North-West London Warehouse
The container was due at a North-West London industrial estate where Lopez was found unloading the hidden stash alongside an accomplice. Bashar Fares Al-Safee arrived soon after to supervise. Once the offloading finished, NCA swooped and arrested the pair, along with a third man who was later released without charges.
Lopez and Al-Safee were hit with conspiracy counts for importing and supplying class A drugs. Yesterday (February 25), after a seven-week trial, they were found guilty. Today (February 26), Southwark Crown Court handed down heavy sentences: 21 years to Al-Safee and 15 years to Lopez.
False Identities and Fake Businesses Exposed
The investigation revealed cunning deception. Lopez rented the £17,000-per-quarter industrial unit pretending to assist a Saudi Sheikh storing luxury cars. Meanwhile, Al-Safee hijacked the identity of a genuine fruit import company, created fake emails, and set up a virtual office to hide his tracks.
NCA detectives connected Al-Safee to burner phones used to arrange the shipment and traced payments he made under a false name. Costa Rican authorities joined the crackdown, arresting a company director and seizing a tonne of cocaine from a fruit packing plant.
Fighting the Drug Trade: NCA & CPS Unite
Regional Head of Investigations Jacque Beer said, “This seizure and investigation have kept a huge quantity of cocaine off UK streets, bringing traffickers to account here and in Central America.”
She added, “Lopez and Al-Safee tried to profit from a trade that fuels violence and exploitation worldwide. Working with Border Force and global law enforcement, the NCA is committed to protecting the public and prosecuting offenders.”
Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Rose-Marie Franton said, “The CPS worked closely with the NCA to build a strong case. Despite their denials, the evidence clearly linked Lopez and Al-Safee to this high-value cocaine ring, ensuring justice was served.”
This bust sends a clear warning: smuggling class A drugs into the UK will lead to serious jail time, no matter the hiding place.
