British man gets 16 years for role in bid to import ton of cocaine

A 49-year-old man from West Yorkshire was jailed for 16 years yesterday for his part in a plot to import a ton of cocaine into Britain — which was seized by the Irish Naval Service.

Stephen Powell, 48, of Netherfield Road in Guiseley in England was arrested following the interception of the yacht Makayabella around 300 miles off the south-west coast of Ireland last September.

Acting on intelligence, the Naval Service boarded the Makayabella and discovered around a ton of cocaine onboard.