Bent officer’s 23yrs for lethal haul

A CORRUPT UK Border Force officer who tried to smuggle firearms and drugs worth £3.5million into the country has been jailed for 23 years.

Gambling addict Simon Pellett, 37, had been under National Crime Agency surveillance and was using his work van when French police swooped in Calais.

The haul he aimed to take through the Channel Tunnel last October included 34kg of cocaine and 6kg of heroin.

Defending, Nigel Lambert QC said he was “driven by his addiction to gambling”.

Pellett, of Dover, had denied importing guns and drugs, plus misconduct in public office. Sentencing at Isleworth crown court, Judge Robin Johnson said it was a “shocking breach of trust”.

Accomplices Alex Howard, 35, of Sittingbourne, Kent, and David Baker, 55, of Lewisham, South London got 10 and 20 years.

GUNS Weapon found in his work van CORRUPT Gambling addict Simon Pellett DRUGS He had coke and heroin