Drugs kingpins jailed for plotting rival's murder

Two men who ran a multi-million pound drugs-smuggling operation have been jailed for life for plotting to murder a rival.

James Harding, 34, from Alton in Hampshire, and his "loyal right-hand man" Jayes Kharouti, 39, from Epsom in Surrey, ran a vast criminal empire and imported £30m worth of cocaine into the UK.

They were sentenced after being found guilty of conspiracy to murder following a trial at the Old Bailey. Harding had also been convicted of conspiring to import cocaine, which Kharouti, had admitted.

Encrypted messages showed them discussing recruiting a hitman to put an unnamed rival courier "permanently out of business".

The pair's operation made £5 million in profit from importing drugs over 10 weeks in 2020 alone.

Metropolitan Police officers trawled through thousands of messages on encrypted communication service EncroChat.

They showed Harding and Kharouti planning to arm the hitman with a gun and ammunition for the "full M" - a murder.

The data came from French police who broke the encryption code to the service favoured by the criminal underworld.

Other messages showed the defendants discussing violence against anyone tempted to speak to the police about their drug business.

In one message, Harding said: "Bro u just have to know where their nan lives. They all love their nans. Then when they act up they know granny gonna get one in the head lol. Keeps them in check."

In turn, Kharouti had threatened to arrange to "get a prisoner's head bust open" if he talked to the police.

At the time, Harding, who claimed to be a high-end watch sales executive, was living in luxury in Dubai, staying in five-star hotels and driving Bugatti and Lamborghini sports cars.

Video footage released by the police showed the moment he was arrested at Geneva airport in Switzerland on December 27 2021 and extradited to the UK.

Kharouti was extradited from Turkey on 25 June 2024.

Judge Anthony Leonard KC ordered Harding should serve a minimum term of 32 years and Kharouti at least 26 years.

Passing sentence, he said it was "hard to comprehend" the amount of cocaine imported and the profits would have been "very substantial".

"Without the benefit of EncroChat your scale of offending would never have been apparent."

The case formed part of a wider operation targeting criminals who used EncroChat.

Det Ch Insp Jim Casey, from Scotland Yard, said the sentences reflected "the severity of the crimes the duo committed".

"Following one of the largest EncroChat investigations in the Met's history, I am pleased that both criminals are serving the time they deserve."

You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.