Drug Smuggling At Sea!

You may have seen in the news an article regarding an elderly British couple being jailed for 8 years by a Portuguese court for drug smuggling on a cruise ship.

The couple were on a cruise with Cruise & Maritime on the Marco Polo sailing from the Caribbean to Europe.  They were attempting to smuggle 9kg of cocaine with an estimated street value of £1 million.

Whilst docked in Lisbon Portugal a raid on their cabin found the Class A drugs in the lining of four suitcases.

The couple claimed they were duped into bringing the cases for a friend.  This was dismissed in court.

The couple had previously been jailed in Norway for trafficking 240kg of cannabis in 2010.  You would have thought they would have learnt their lesson!

The couple were arrested on board the Marco Polo on 4th December 2018 after the Portuguese police acted on a tip-off from Britain’s National Crime Agency.

The couple were told they will serve their 8 year sentence in Portugal instead of being sent back to Britain to serve their sentence.

The story behind this is a ‘friend’ on the island of St Lucia asked the couple to take the cases back to the UK and they would be paid £800 to do this.  On my opinion alarm bells would definitely be ringing by now!

The couple were asked in court how they could pay for the cruises they have been on which cost around £18,000 when they lived on a joint monthly pension of £1,150 and out of that they had to pay £445 in rent.  A bit suspicious maybe?  They claimed they had paid through savings from hard work???

The crime they were convicted of carries a prison sentence of 4 to 12 years in jail in Portugal.  They had already served 9 months in custody at the time of the sentence so this will be taken into account when their release date is fixed.

Something tells me they will not be booking another cruise for a very long time!!

Until Next Time…..Happy Cruising!

12 Comments on “Drug Smuggling At Sea!

  1. If it sounds too good to be true, then it usually is
    Two plant pots. They knew what they were doing

  2. We sailed on the Marco Polo in June (first time and most definitely the last). We met other cruisers who loved it . But it was not for us, apart from the constant smell of diesel, the assembly rooms were dirty and carpets and furniture stained and tired looking.
    Also we were shocked by the lack of security. We did mention this but were met with blank looks.
    It’s the only cruise ship I have ever sailed on where we did not have to go through security in the departure hall or embarking the ship.
    Cruise cards were scanned leaving and returning from trips ashore but no scanning of handbags, parcels etc. ever took place.
    A smugglers dream boat.

  3. How stupid they were. They already had been imprisoned before, for the same charge. How did they believe that they could get away with it. I wished that they had received the maximum sentence of 12 years.

  4. Absolutely disgraceful they should have sniffer dogs to check cases before boarding

  5. It is unfortunate that passengers in this category cause cruise companies to have more sophisticated
    equipment in detection of all items that are not legal to have aboard, and consequential the check in
    takes longer for your safety and prices have to increase or companies to keep the ships viable have to think hard in what can be offered or cut out to remain in the blue and at the same time ensure
    your safety for you to enjoy the experience and come back for more. Those that break the rules
    make the sentence that makes the risk not to do it, and hope that the country that is unfortunate
    having to keep guilty parties will be empowered to recover some if not all assets they may have in the cost of keeping them for the sentence.. Yes I have cruised and fortunate to have enjoyed all
    by prices that I could afford, yes many times down at the waterline or inside but excellent in value for money when you compare the price of some B & B but do ensure your travel insurance gives you that required. Goodluck in happy new horizons and safe return home.

  6. Did they think because of there age they would get away with it?
    They should be made an example of by getting a long jail sentence
    As the misery the drugs cause to people and there families is shocking

  7. Given their ages+fact they’ve been imprisoned before it serves them right. Do they have no brains. Or concerns for the poor+ weak individuals that consume this hidious contraband. Obviously not. Let them for in Portugal.

  8. Very happy that Shannon managed to get a free drinks package, cabin upgrade and the advertised tailor made tour that we wanted even though the original dates advertised were were no longer available with a free drinks package.

    Shannon searched the system and managed to get a date (3 weeks earlier than originally advertised) with the free drinks and the interior to balcony upgrade, so end result was same tour, same ship, premium drinks package, balcony cabin, a different date and 3 different ports of call but we were very happy with the new ports of call and all for a very similar price.

    We booked. – Downside its in nearly 12 months time – long wait but looking forward to it.

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About Me

Hello Everyone My name is Shannon and as the blog suggests I love everything about cruising and travel. I live with my partner of 10 years, my 20 year old son and a Jack Russell Dog named Bentley.  Family life is very important to me and we enjoy doing activities…

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