Sentenced: Harlesden woman for her role in £1m drugs plot

The consignments were shipped in from Germany (Image: Archant)

Marcia Quinalha, of Drayton Road, was convicted of possessing criminal property after £311,000 was found in a back Mercedes she was driving when she was stopped by the police.

The court heard the 45-year-old had meet with a convicted drug trafficker outside Bickley Railway Station before taking a package from him and driving to Eltham where a bag was placed inside the car.

She was stopped in east Finchley where the cash was discovered hidden in the vehicle.

Quinalha was convicted last week but the details have been made public today following the jailing of drug smugglers Peter Robinson, 61, Gareth Roberts, 42, and father and son 71-year-old Terry and Steven Pooley, 44.

The drugs were found in these bags (Image: Archant)

All four were caught following a six-month intelligence-led operation launched by detectives in the autumn of 2012.

The gang imported a total of 17kgs of cocaine, 18kgs of heroin, 302kgs of amphetamine and 133kgs of herbal cannabis through two shipping consignments to St Helens in Merseyside from Holland via Germany.

Quinalha was sentenced to 18 months in jail suspended for a year.

Robinson and Steven Pooley were jailed for 17 years, Terry Pooley 16 years and Roberts was given 10 years.

All four men convicted of importing Class A and B drugs.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil Williams, said: “This was a well orchestrated system that saw each person play a pivotal role in the large-scale importation of drugs into the UK. They have all profited from a crime that damages people’s lives and leads them into addiction.

“The Met’s operation linked each part of the chain of supply and distribution, and will have significantly impacted on the flow of drugs in London and the surrounding areas.”