Drug boss arrested in Geneva: British gang leader convicted
James Harding, leader of an international drug gang, was arrested at Geneva airport and extradited to the United Kingdom, where he has now been convicted of cocaine smuggling and planning a murder.
Drug boss arrested in Geneva: British gang leader convicted
A 34-year-old British man who was regarded as the leader of an internationally operating drug gang was arrested at Geneva airport and later handed over to British authorities. James Harding from Hampshire was convicted in London of importing cocaine into the United Kingdom and planning the murder of a rival. This is reported by the BBC.
Harding lived in Dubai and presented himself as a sales director for luxury watches. In reality, however, he stood at the head of a criminal association that, within just ten weeks in 2020, generated more than five million pounds through the sale of drugs throughout the United Kingdom.
Investigators were able to crack the group's encrypted messages, which were exchanged via EncroChat mobile phones. The gang believed its communications were inaccessible to the police. In the chats, Harding and his accomplice Jayes Kharouti used pseudonyms – Harding called himself "thetopsking", whilst Kharouti appeared as "besttops".
The intercepted conversations showed that the two planned the murder of a courier from a rival organisation in April 2020. They discussed deploying a shooter who was to kill the victim with a pistol. A contract killer was hired and supplied with a weapon and ammunition. For the contract killing, they selected a man with a previous conviction for manslaughter.
Between April and June 2020, approximately 50 drug imports took place, during which a total of about one tonne of cocaine was smuggled into the country. Further seizures proved that the discussed drug deliveries were real and the communications were serious.
Harding was apprehended at Geneva airport on 27 December 2021 and extradited to the United Kingdom in May 2022. His accomplice Kharouti had previously fled to Turkey but was also brought back. Another accomplice, Peter Thompson, pleaded guilty to the illegal importation of cocaine and to possession of a firearm and ammunition.
During the trial, Harding claimed he was not "thetopsking". He stated that he had been in a relationship with a man who used this alias and had kept this secret out of shame. He explained that he had moved to Dubai because "thetopsking" lived there. He did not name the alleged mastermind because he feared attacks.
Two further members of the group, Calvin Crump and Khuram Ahmed, pleaded guilty to involvement in cocaine smuggling in February 2024. The sentence for Harding is still pending.
Source: BBC