Gold worth £4m seized from drug cartels by National Crime Agency at London Heathrow
Around £4 million of gold has been seized from South American drug cartels.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) reclaimed 104kg of gold bars, some in the shape of hearts, after they were found hidden in the cargo section of a plane at Heathrow Airport in June 2019.
The plane had arrived from the Cayman Islands and had stopped at Heathrow on its way to Switzerland.
The gold had earlier been taken to the Caymans on a private jet which arrived from Venezuela.
The NCA obtained a civil recovery order for the gold and said its officers worked with authorities in the Cayman Islands to prove a false paperwork trail had been created to hide that the gold was from Venezuela.
After settlement discussions and an application to the High Court, the NCA obtained a civil recovery order for more than 80% of the gold under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
The remaining 20% will be returned to companies with a financial interest in the gold.
NCA Branch Commander Andy Noyes said: “Criminals are attracted to gold as a way of moving drugs money due to the high value contained in relatively small amounts.
“Our investigation showed this shipment was linked to drug cartels operating out of South America, but we were able to stop it reaching its final destination thanks to established links with overseas partners.
“This intervention has disrupted the criminal network, stopping them from reinvesting in further criminality that causes harm to our communities.”
Heathrow declined to comment.
Press Association – Jacob Phillips