An Indian-origin couple in the UK whose extradition is being sought by India has been found guilty of exporting more than half a ton of cocaine to Australia, after an investigation found they were behind a front company that transported the drugs by plane. Loads of covered metal tool boxes.
Arti Dhir, 59, and Kavaljitsinh Raijada, 35, from Hanwell, Ealing, were discovered by the National Crime Agency (NCA) after they intercepted cocaine worth £57 million in May 2021. issued a statement on Monday.
Deal and Lejada deny exporting cocaine to Australia and laundering money. A jury found them guilty of 12 export offenses and 18 money laundering offences, following a trial at Southwark Crown Court on Monday.
They will be sentenced in the same court on Tuesday.
The drugs, which arrived from the UK on commercial flights, consisted of six metal tool boxes which were opened to contain 514 kilograms of cocaine.
The drugs were worth up to £57 million when sold in Australia, where prices are significantly higher than in the UK.
In the UK, the wholesale price of a kilogram of cocaine is around £26,000 per kilogram, but in Australia the same amount of cocaine sells for £110,000.
Police traced the shipment to Dhir and Raijada, who had set up a front company called Viefly Freight Services for the sole purpose of smuggling drugs.
The two defendants have served as directors of the company at different times since its incorporation in June 2015.
Raijada’s fingerprints were found on the plastic packaging of the metal toolbox containing the seized drugs, while receipts for an order for the toolbox worth £2,855 were found at the couple’s home.
The NCA’s case is that 37 shipments have been sent to Australia since June 2019, of which 22 were fake and 15 contained cocaine.
From March 2003 to October 2016, Dhir was employed by a flight services company at Heathrow Airport.
Raijada worked for the same company from March 2014 to December 2016.
NCA investigators believe their knowledge of airport cargo procedures was used to cover up their criminal activities.
Dhir and Raijada were arrested on June 21, 2021, at their home in Hanwell. Police seized gold-plated silver bars worth £5,000, £13,000 was found at the home and £60,000 in cash was found in a safe.
After further investigation, the two were arrested again in February 2023.
NCA officers discovered nearly £3 million in cash hidden in boxes and suitcases in a storage room in Hanwell that Raijada rented in his mother’s name.
The financial investigation found they also bought a flat in Ealing for £800,000 and a Land Rover for £62,000, although their claimed profits were only a few thousand pounds.
The investigation revealed that the two defendants held far more cash in their bank accounts than their declared income.
They have deposited nearly £740,000 in cash into 22 different bank accounts since 2019 and are further accused of money laundering.
The National Crime Agency will now launch proceeds of crime proceedings against the two defendants in a bid to deprive them of their assets.
NCA senior investigating officer Piers Phillips said: “Arti Dhir and Kavaljitsinh Raijada used their insider knowledge of the air cargo industry to traffic cocaine worth tens of millions of pounds from the UK to Australia, where they knew it could be maximally Maximize income.
“They kept their illegal profits in cash in their homes and storage rooms and purchased properties, gold and silver in an attempt to hide their wealth. These defendants may have thought they had escaped the misery caused by the drug trade, but their greed fueled This pain.
“The NCA is working closely with our partners in Australia and UK Border Force to dismantle the supply chain created by Dhir and Raijada and bring them to justice. We will continue to target the supply of Class A drugs and those regulating them in the UK and overseas Criminals.” NSW Police Organized Crime Squad Commander, Detective Superintendent Peter Fox, said the outcome was a great example of how law enforcement agencies work together to disrupt the international drugs trade.
Detective Sergeant Fox said: “Co-operation between authorities in Australia and abroad is why police were able to stop a sophisticated attempt to import drugs into Australia by air and hold those responsible accountable.
“Serious and organized crime networks often know no borders, which is why working with our international counterparts is so important to solving global problems,” Fox said.
The couple had earlier been accused of plotting the murder of their 11-year-old adopted son Gopal Sejani in 2017 to collect insurance compensation.
The couple from Hanwell traveled to Gujarat to adopt Gopal in 2015, promising he would have a better life in London.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from associated news agency – PTI)
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