Superyacht tour operator jailed for ‘nefarious’ deadly drug importation scheme

A superyacht tour operator has been jailed for more than 11 years over a “nefarious” plan to import millions of dollars worth of cocaine that turned deadly. James Blake Blee, 64, appeared in the NSW District Court on Tuesday after pleading guilty to people smuggling and importing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug. The court heard he was approached by someone in Indonesia with an offer to become involved in what Blee described as a “nefarious” scheme. The experienced yachtsman agreed and smuggled Brazilian nationals Bruno Borges Martins and Jhoni Fernandes Da Silva on his boat from Indonesia into a port at Darwin in April 2022. When they arrived under cover of darkness, Blee concealed his illegal passengers by telling Australian Border Force officers that it was only himself and his son on board the vessel. The court heard Blee was offered $300,000 for his role in the importation of up to 70 kgs of cocaine, but that he didn’t know which border controlled drug the package contained or how much. Judge Troy Anderson said Blee’s diving and boating skills meant he had a “relatively unique skill set which no doubt justified in the minds of the syndicate his high price tag”. The court heard he was only paid $200,000, some of which was spent on coordinating and facilitating the collection of the drug packages from their underwater hiding place. Blee trained the two divers and equipped them with scuba diving equipment so they could dive in the Port of Newcastle to retrieve dozens of bricks of cocaine stashed in the hull of a container ship. The divers entered the water together to retrieve the drugs, but Mr Da Silva surfaced around 5am and said he was unable to find Mr Martins. Mr Martins’s body was found hours later floating in the Port surrounded by 42 packages of cocaine with his diving mask still attached. After handing over a package believed to contain the same amount of cocaine, Mr Da Silva went missing and is presumed dead. The court heard the recovered 42 bricks of cocaine weighed more than 42 kgs with a 82.5 per cent purity. The court heard Blee took possession of the recovered package of drugs, which was not seized by police, and helped to repackage it for distribution. His lawyer argued he had nothing to do with the importation but rather dealt with the product once it arrived, but Judge Anderson said that argument would “fly in the face” of his guilty plea. “I do not accept the offender’s liability is limited in that way,” he said. Judge Anderson said the offending involved a “high degree of responsibility”, including lying to ABF officers to commit a “serious breach” of Australia’s national security laws. Blee was arrested at Cairns airport on May 11 as he prepared to board a one-way flight to Singapore. Judge Anderson said he had been motivated by financial difficulties to take “a calculated risk, which as it turns out failed spectacularly”. “I accept the conduct is an aberration,” he said. “He was not motivated by greed but by a sad, misconceived and desperate financial gamble driven by financial stress, which has devastated the lives of both himself and his family.” In a statement to the court, Blee’s wife said she was left “desolate, angry and disappointed” by his decision to turn to crime after their business suffered due to Covid. “I feel cheated by James’ conduct, especially as our children and I have to bear the burden of his decisions,” she said. Judge Anderson accepted Blee had demonstrated contrition and remorse for his actions. He sentenced the superyacht tour operator to 11 years and three months behind bars, which was backdated to take into consideration the time Blee has already spent in custody. The 64-year-old will be eligible for parole in 2029 after serving seven years and six months behind bars.