£6.1m bill for drugs kingpin who stashed cocaine in van

A DRUGS gang boss has been ordered to pay more than £6million after he was jailed following the seizure of 186kg of cocaine from a van on the M6.

Jamie Simpson, 32, and his associates were on their way back from Kent when police surrounded their Ford Transit van in the fast lane of the motorway near Knutsford, Cheshire, on August 2, 2018.

Police found £20million of the drug concealed under the floor of the van, as well as in the passenger seat and in boxes. It was one of the country’s largest land-based cocaine seizures.

Simpson (pictured), who was jailed for 11 years and six months for conspiracy to supply cocaine in April last year, has now been ordered to repay £6,143,854 – his share of the profits – after a proceeds of crime hearing at Liverpool crown court on Friday.

Cheshire Constabulary’s Det

Ch Insp Giles Pierce said: ‘It is unheard of for a criminal to have such a large benefit figure but this is due to the fact that Simpson was involved in one of the largest inland cocaine seizures in this country. More than £6million of that cocaine belonged to Simpson and the remaining amount would have been purchased by other organised criminals. Simpson will always be in debt and owe the police the money until he has repaid the full amount.’ Det Ch Insp Pierce said police will have the power to seize any valuable goods he tries to buy, meaning ‘he will never live the lavish lifestyle he did when he was operating his criminal enterprise’. Simpson was one of 21 people convicted as part of Operation Dreadnought, an investigation into two organised gangs in Warrington who made, distributed and profited from the supply of drugs across the country. Police said the gangs led ‘cashrich’ lives and drove fast, highpowered cars, but their flashy lifestyles raised suspicions. Cheshire police and crime commissioner David Keane said the money would be ‘reinvested back into our communities to discourage people from making the same mistakes’.