Drug boss Harding sentenced to minimum 32 years over murder plot uncovered via EncroChat

James Harding and Jayes Kharouti were sentenced to life imprisonment at the Old Bailey after decrypted EncroChat messages revealed a murder plot and drug trafficking worth 30 million pounds.

Life sentences for British drug boss duo following EncroChat investigation

Two men who built a criminal empire with cocaine turnover of 30 million pounds have been sentenced to life imprisonment in London. According to the BBC, James Harding, 34, from Alton in Hampshire, and Jayes Kharouti, 39, from Epsom in Surrey, were found guilty of conspiracy to murder at the Old Bailey.

Judge Anthony Leonard KC imposed a minimum sentence of 32 years on Harding and at least 26 years on Kharouti. Both were also convicted of importing cocaine — Harding following a guilty verdict, Kharouti following a guilty plea.

Hitman hired for "full M"

Investigators from the Metropolitan Police analysed thousands of encrypted messages on the EncroChat communications service, which was favoured by criminal networks. The decryption was carried out by French authorities, who subsequently shared the data.

The messages showed Harding and Kharouti planning the recruitment of a contract killer to take an unnamed rival courier "permanently out of business" — referred to internally as "full M", meaning murder. The hitman was to be equipped with a firearm and ammunition.

Further messages show that the pair threatened violence against potential witnesses. Harding wrote: "Bro u just have to know where their nan lives. They all love their nans. Then when they act up they know granny gonna get one in the head lol. Keeps them in check." Kharouti for his part threatened to have a fellow prison inmate's "head smashed in" if he spoke to the police.

Luxury life in Dubai, arrest in Geneva

During the investigation, Harding, who presented himself outwardly as a dealer in high-end watches, lived in Dubai — in five-star hotels and with Bugatti and Lamborghini sports cars. Police footage shows his arrest at Geneva airport on 27 December 2021; he was subsequently extradited to the United Kingdom. Kharouti followed on 25 June 2024 following extradition from Turkey.

In just ten weeks of 2020 alone, the operation generated a profit of five million pounds from drug imports, according to the court.

Judge: "Scarcely comprehensible"

Judge Leonard stated when passing sentence that it was "scarcely comprehensible" what quantities of cocaine had been imported, and the profits had been "very substantial". "Without EncroChat, the extent of your crimes would never have come to light," he said.

Detective Chief Inspector Jim Casey of Scotland Yard said the sentences reflected "the seriousness of the crimes committed". "Following one of the largest EncroChat investigations in the history of the Met, I am pleased that both criminals are serving the time they deserve."

The case is part of a wider operation against criminals who used the encrypted service EncroChat.

Source: BBC