Cocaine courier jailed for 5 years

A man who acted as a courier in the supply of nearly 90 grammes of cocaine was sentenced to five years in prison at the Supreme Court on Tuesday. 

Manuel Hernandez, 37, of Beachview Terraces, had admitted to possessing 87.8 grammes of cocaine, but denied intending to supply the drug. 

But he was convicted by jurors after a two-day trial last November. 

The cocaine was valued at £5,268, but during the trial the court heard it would have a value of some £10,000 once cut and mixed with other ingredients and sold on the street.  

On November 3, 2022, a Royal Gibraltar Police car driving on Devil’s Tower Road was overtaken by a motorbike driving at speed and decided to pursue the vehicle.  

After a chase, the defendant was stopped by the RGP in the Varyl Begg area, when officers noticed a clear plastic wrapper with cocaine inside Mr Hernandez’s bag.  

During the trial jurors heard from the two Royal Gibraltar Police officers who arrested the defendant.   

They also heard from a drugs expert, a Customs officer with some 17 years of experience, who said the slab of cocaine found in Mr Hernandez’s possession was “heavily associated” with the early stages of cocaine distribution in the supply chain. 

During sentencing, the court heard that Hernandez had nine previous convictions for drug related offences, including three for supplying Class A Drugs. 

Puisne Judge Matthew Happold handed Hernandez a five-year custodial sentence. 

In a statement issued by the RGP on Tuesday afternoon, Detective Constable James Quigley, the officer in charge of the investigation, said: “This was a substantial amount of cocaine that has been taken off the streets thanks to the eagle eyes of the RGP’s Armed Response Officers and a subsequent investigation by a team of detectives.” 

“This result will no doubt help keep our streets safer from drugs.” 

The Commissioner of Police Richard Ullger, said: “I would like to publicly thank the officers involved for their professionalism and hard work during this investigation.” 

“This is a good example of how our front-line officers are playing a key role in tackling drugs in Gibraltar, despite us having to re-deploy our Drug Squad officers to other high-risk areas of policing.”