Seven more men have been sentenced for their involvement in a sophisticated drug conspiracy which smuggled vast quantities of cocaine into the UK in wheels of cheese.

Three defendants sentenced today and four others sentenced on Monday are among 22 members of an Organised Crime Group (OCG) who have been convicted of conspiring to supply cocaine following an extensive investigation by West Yorkshire Police and a successful CPS prosecution.

Although the exact quantity of cocaine processed by the OCG is unknown, available intelligence and evidential assessments estimate it to be between 4 and 14 tonnes. This equates to a street value of between £400 million and £1.4 billion.

According to Home Office analysis, the UK consumes approximately 120 tonnes of cocaine each year, meaning this would account for up to 11% of the annual UK consumption of cocaine.

The group imported commercial consignments of cheese on mass from Europe, via road and ferry, to a legitimate distribution hub in Derby. Refrigerated vehicles then transported the pallets to industrial units in West Yorkshire and Lancashire, where cocaine hidden inside the cheese wheels was removed, repackaged, and supplied onwards throughout the UK. It is estimated that the group imported over 100,000kg of cheese between December 2022 and April 2023. Approximately 25% of this weight was concealed blocks of cocaine.

In May 2023, police raided the Lancashire distribution hub and found 217kg of cocaine concealed inside wheels of Gouda cheese. The group then changed tactics, using consignments of chocolate spread and frozen fish mince instead due to their smell and density.

Zoe Nixon, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS Yorkshire and Humberside, said: “Behind the creative attempts of this group to conceal their dealings was an industrial-scale criminal enterprise which had been funnelling vast quantities of illegal drugs across the country.

“Each of the defendants had a role to play in keeping that enterprise operating, whether that was running the hubs, unpacking the drugs or transporting them to buyers across the country.

“Working closely with West Yorkshire Police, several other forces and an experienced team of barristers we were able to piece together extensive amounts of evidence to demonstrate the men’s guilt and hold those responsible for this operation accountable.”

The prosecution showed how members of the gang held different roles in the process, including managing the distribution hubs, preparing drugs for onward supply and delivering it to regional buyers.

Mobile telephone evidence and various other police tactics were combined to establish contact between members of the group and track the journey of the food stuffs from the distribution hubs onwards. Analysis of text messages by one of the defendants made clear the significant level of organisation undertaken by the group, including operational security, a clear command structure and direction from overseas.

Detective Inspector Kevin Daly, of West Yorkshire Police Programme Precision, said: “This was a vast and complex criminal operation involved in distributing huge quantities of cocaine that were being smuggled into the UK, mostly in what appeared to be legitimate consignments of cheese.

“The quantities of the drug involved make it the largest criminal enterprise that we as a Force have taken down, and the success of this operation is testament to the hard work and dedication of the officers involved.

“They spent many months painstakingly building up a complete picture of how the operation worked and who were the key people running it in the UK. It was only by taking the required amount of time to gather a detailed and comprehensive evidential package that we were able to dismantle this distribution network as fully as we could and ensure that those who ran it were caught and held to account.

“We know only too well the damage that drugs do in our communities, where they fuel crime and serious violence, and the negative impact they have on the lives of individual users and their families.

“Those involved in this significant criminal operation were profiting from that misery and we hope it will provide some reassurance to people to see them face the consequences of their actions.

“Tackling serious and organised criminality at this level and complexity presents a significant challenge to law enforcement both locally and internationally, but we will continue to do everything we can alongside our partner agencies to target those involved, disrupt their activities and bring them to justice.”