UK lands 398kg of Heroin

In one of the largest ever seizures in UK history, cops have seized £40m ($48.7m) worth of heroin. Officers acted on a suspicious vessel in Felixstowe, England. Officers uncovered a container with 398 kg of heroin, concealed under a load of towels and bathrobes. The heroin was removed and the container returned to the vessel and sent on its way. After arriving in Antwerp, Belgium, the container was moved by truck to Rotterdam, all under police watch. When suspects went to unload the cargo, Dutch police swooped in.

Coast Guard crew make 2 massive cocaine busts

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Midgett recently seized more than 4,600 pounds of cocaine, their second cocaine bust in five days. The drugs were confiscated July 31 from a "low-profile go-fast" vessel in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean. The bust came days after the July 26 seizure of more than 2,100 pounds of cocaine from a different boat. The more than 6,700 pounds of cocaine seized in the two operations was worth $89 million. Over the last five years, the Coast Guard has seized more than 923 tons -- 2 million pounds -- of cocaine, worth more than $27 billion.

USCG seizes 13 tons of Cocaine

The U.S. Coast Guard recorded a video of a frantic boat crew desperately dumping huge bags of cocaine into the sea during a high-speed chase in the eastern Pacific earlier this month. That operation and a series of others netted 26,000 pounds of cocaine valued at $350 million

Snow globes from Canada contained $1m of liquid Meth

Australian police say about $1m worth of meth was found hidden as the liquid in souvenir snow globes sent from Canada. Australian Border Force officers in Sydney stopped the load at the border in a shipment of 15 snow globes that arrived by air. The shipment was X-rayed. The liquid inside was field-tested and gave a positive result for methamphetamine. All told, there was 7.5 litres of liquid methamphetamine.

It is unknown whether the fact many of the snow globes coming from Canada featured statues of llamas and saguaro cactus aroused suspicion in the cops.

$10m drug bust sees 11 charged, including 2 Sunwing Airlines employees

Two employees with Sunwing Airlines are among 11 charged in a drug bust in Ontario. 40 charges have been laid. Cops seized 10 kg of fentanyl, 1.3 kg of heroin, one kg of methamphetamine, and 30 kg of pot. The street value is estimated to be $10m. Also seized was $400k in cash and three high end vehicles.

The two Sunwing Airlines employees working at Toronto Pearson International Airport were charged with attempting to import cocaine and trafficking cocaine. Derrick Isreal Shand, Verlon Winston Peters, Tim Adam Lodge, Brittany Michelle Crozier, Courtenay Elizabeth Doolittle, Andrej Marek Krawczyk, Gianni Ballestrin, Clint McInnis, Jameal McInnis, Michael Brutto and Jehan Carvalho were all arrested and are facing various charges.

Fentanyl dealer McCulloch pulls 10 years

Leslie McCulloch pleaded guilty to production of a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking in February of 2017. He tried to take back his plea, then jumped bail and went on the run for three months. McCulloch was sentenced to 10 years, minus 671 days for pre-sentence custody. The judge did not consider rehabilitation as a possibility for McCulloch. McCulloch had been using an analogue of fentanyl called acetylfentanyl as the active ingredient in his pills. The purity of the powder and pills analyzed ranged from 1.2% to 3.1% acetylfentanyl.

In parole documents, he was described as a “middleman who transported drugs for the Hell's Angels.”

At the time of his arrest, McCulloch was on parole after serving a 4.5-year sentence for trafficking cocaine.

See ----->Fentanyl dealer Leslie McCulloch runs no more - busted
See ----->Sentencing date FINALLY set for fentanyl producer Leslie McCulloch

Career mobster 'Pudgy' begs for health mercy in embezzlement case

Admitted union fraudster John "Pudgy" Matassa, 68, pleaded guilty to embezzling funds from the Independent Union of Amalgamated Workers Local 711 where he was secretary-treasurer. Considered the highest-ranking made member of the Chicago Outfit to go down in federal court in a decade, Pudgy says prison would be hazardous to his health.

Matassa's plea for no prison time doesn't come close to the government's sentencing request, which includes a minimum 27 months in jail. Matassa, who pledges to repay the union and the Social Security Administration, has filed a request for mercy, almost entirely based on his many medical conditions.
"John's health could be seriously and irrevocably compromised" by imprisonment, according to his court filing. And dangerous, they say: "Other more able-bodied prisoners will be moving faster than John can, increasing the likelihood he will fall and injure himself. And, in the event of an altercation in a prison environment, John will simply be unable to defend himself."