# Former soldiers jailed for £34m cocaine smuggling plot using military expertise

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/old-soldiers-use-military-training-to-smuggle-34million-of-cocaine-into-uk-after-using-fishing-boat-to-scoop-it-up-in-english-channel/
- Published: 2026-10-24T17:26:48+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-24T17:37:16+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16235581/Old-soldiers-military-training-smuggle-cocaine-UK.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Americas, Health, Medicine, UK, World

## Key points

- Five men were jailed over a £34 million cocaine smuggling plot.
- Two former soldiers organised the Channel pick-up.
- The gang was intercepted at Eastbourne harbour.

## Summary

Five men have been jailed for conspiring to bring 425kg of cocaine, valued at £34 million, into the UK aboard a fishing boat. Two former British Army soldiers, Alan John Colquhoun and William Donohoe, organised the operation, which the court described as sophisticated and planned using their military experience.

The cocaine had been dropped into the English Channel with a GPS tracker for the gang to collect, but National Crime Agency officers intercepted the boat at Sovereign Harbour, Eastbourne, on 8 June. Colquhoun and Donohoe each received 16 years; skipper Ian Smith was jailed for 12 years, lookout Daniel Ruffell for eight years, and Jacob Cronin for six years and eight months. The court heard the two former soldiers were to be paid £80,000.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.