Three jailed for smuggling one tonne of cocaine by luxury yacht

Three Dutch men have been jailed for up to seven years for smuggling over one tonne of cocaine on board a luxury yacht, the BBC reports. Klaas L, 61, and owner of the yacht, was jailed for seven years and his son Robert, 33, for five years by judges in Rotterdam. A third man, Mohamed Z, 45, was jailed for eight years. L's other son was acquitted, the BBC said. The drugs were found by Southampton police after a tip-off last year. The motor yacht Louise had been loaded onto a ship transporter bound for Holland while in the Caribbean, where it was already under surveillance. The transporter made a scheduled stop in Southampton where the yacht was searched by British and Dutch officials. Hidden After six days, they eventually found the drugs hidden beneath the bathing platform at the back of the boat. The yacht's owner had tried to pick the boat up in Southampton but were delayed by British officials who said it was no longer seaworthy while the investigation continued. The drugs, with a street value of €45m, were probably hidden on the yacht in Venezuela. According to British media reports, the drug was 90% pure and represented of of the largest finds of a Class A drug ever made in the UK. Police also recovered a million euros in cash, two Harley Davidson motorbikes, two firearms, a silencer and a quantity of ecstasy.