Australian Olympian and brother found guilty in $152 million cocaine plot

Australian Olympic kayaker Nathan Baggaley and his brother Dru have been found guilty of trying to smuggle hundreds of kilograms of cocaine valued at more than $150 million into the country in 2018, CNN affiliate Nine News reported.

Nathan Baggaley, who won two silver medals at the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, and his brother had pleaded not guilty but a Brisbane jury found both men guilty following a two-week trial, Nine News reports.

Dru Baggaley and another man were arrested in the summer of 2018 after law enforcement intercepted their boat, according to Nine News.

A press release from the Australian Federal Police (AFP) notes the men tried to evade law enforcement and video footage showed them throwing bags overboard.

Authorities seized more than 500 kilograms of cocaine, according to court documents.

Nathan Baggaley, who wasn’t on board the boat at the time of the arrests, purchased the vessel and directed the installation of navigation technology, according to court documents.

Court documents detail the prosecution’s evidence linking Nathan Baggaley to the case, noting that his fingerprint was found on a piece of tape used to cover the boat’s registration plate.

He also attempted to contact his brother Dru while he was at sea, according to court documents.

The boat had met a larger foreign vessel off the coast of New South Wales and was subsequently intercepted, according to the prosecution’s case as outlined in court documents.

The brothers have been convicted and served time in connection with drugs charges in the past, according to court documents and local media reports.

They will now remain in custody until sentencing and possibly face life imprisonment, per Nine News.

Culled from CNN.

Cover image – The Courier Mail