An international drug dealer involved in a conspiracy to fly £1.7 million worth of cocaine into an airfield in Northamptonshire is an Iraq war veteran, a court heard.
Christopher McGlone, 27, served three tours of duty in Iraq with the British Army, Northampton Crown Court heard yesterday.
The former soldier will be sentenced today, with five others, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import Class A drugs, along with his brother James McGlone, 30, also of Occupation Road, Corby, Adel Chouhaib, 33, of Lingfield Walk, Corby, Wayne Burgess, of Westfields Road, Corby and Abdelilah Hilali, 35, of Marsham Road, London.
The gang plotted to smuggle five kilograms of cocaine into Deenethorpe Airfield, two miles from Corby, from Abbeville in France.
James Thomas, prosecuting, said Richard Murray, 50, of Greenhill Rise, Corby collected the drugs from a contact in Amsterdam, The Netherlands and drove to the airfield in France where he met Burgess, who had flown from the UK in a £31,000 light aircraft the gang had bought, to collect them. However, he was arrested upon landing on June 26 last year.
Police already had the gang under surveillance and swooped to arrest them when the plane touched down and drugs were found in a wing compartment.
Charles Kayne, for Christopher McGlone, revealed his client was “vulnerable” when he joined the gang, as he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
Mr Kayne said: “ He was vulnerable at the time of the operation and when he was offered the chance to join the gang.
“He has no previous convictions and we can see from the evidence that there is good within this man.
“He was vulnerable and the decision to take part in this operation was the one aberration in this man’s life.”
Mr Kayne said it was a bad decision to leave the army because of “the massive change in his life since his departure “ .
He added that Christopher McGlone had an impressive army record and helped train children at Corby Boxing Club.
Judge Lynn Tayton QC concluded Chouhaib, who also admits a conspiracy to supply cannabis from a house in Grendon Avenue, Corby, played a “leading role” in the international smuggling plot.
She added that it was clear that he directed the other members of the group, directed the buying of the plane and ordered the training of Burgess.
Having bought a light aircraft for cash, the gang arranged for the consignment of drugs to be transported to France where Burgess picked them up in the plane and fly the shipment back to England.
Chouhaib admits being part of the plot, but claims he was only the “transport manager” and the entire operation was arranged by someone above him - who he would not name.
The group is due to be sentenced today.
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