A FORMER Met Police officer from Bexley is one of five car salesmen jailed for their roles in importing £4m worth of drugs.

Michael Daly, aged 48, of Beechway, Bexley, appeared at Kingston Crown Court last Friday for sentencing.

He had pleaded guilty on November 14 last year to conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs.

Also in the dock were Paul Young, aged 40, from West Malling, Kent, and Neil McCrory, aged 31, of Earl Rise, Plumstead, who also pleaded guilty to similar charges.

Also being sentenced were Patrick Ince, aged 45, from Horsmonden, Kent, who was found guilty on February 25 of conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs, and Gary Brennan, aged 45, from Welling, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class B drugs.

All five were arrested on May 16 last year after attempting to land a rigid inflatable boat containing drugs at a remote beach in Capel-le-Ferne, Kent.

The arrests were part of a lengthy, intelligence-led operation into what police described as “a highly organised criminal network” importing predominently Class A and Class B drugs into the UK from France.

The court was told Daly and Young were the leaders of the network, who organised the collection, transport and delivery of the drugs.

On April 22 last year, Daly and Young picked up a motorised rigid inflatable boat in Kent and, under cover of darkness the following night, set off for France with the help of Brennan.

There, they met Ince who had driven to France that day.

Police believe the boat developed a fault because, on April 25, Daly and Young were stopped by French immigration officials while attempting to drive a van containing the damaged boat back to the UK.

Daly was found to be travelling on a false passport, but escaped from detention and stayed in France for another three weeks, until he was arrested arriving in another boat in Kent with Young on May 16.

When police arrested Daly and Young on the beach at Capel-le-Ferne, Daly had two padlocks, which turned out to open a nearby storm drain, where police found eight holdalls containing 200 kilos of a cocktail of cocaine, amphetamines and skunk cannabis with a street value of £4m.

Brennan and McCrory were arrested in a nearby vehicle and Ince was arrested at Dover docks on his way back from France, where he had helped Daly and Young launch the boat.

Daly and Young were each sentenced to eight years, McCrory was sentenced to five years, Ince was sentenced to 10 years and Brennan to four years.

The arrests of Daly and Young were made by the Met’s Projects team together with the UK Borders Agency Marine Operations Unit.

Inspector Grant Johnson, of the Projects team, said: “Sadly Daly was an ex-Met Police officer who grievously abused his previous experience as a detective sergeant and went to great lengths to avoid prosecution.

”I hope this serves as a testimony that, no matter who you are, the consequences will follow."

Daly’s brother Joe, aged 41, of Carrisbrooke Avenue, Bexley, was jailed for 25 years in July last year for his part in trying to smuggle drugs with a street value of £350m into the Irish Republic.