Nicked for helping cops

A retired beachcomber in his 70s spent four hours in a Newport prison cell after leading police to £3 million of cocaine, which had been washed up on an Island beach – and the IW Observer can reveal a second haul was handed in to Freshwater Independent Lifeboat.

Well-known fisherman, Dick ‘Sharky’ Downes, 78, of Atherfield, was arrested on Sunday on suspicion of possession with intent to supply a Class A drug. Dick takes up the story, saying: “I’m down on the beach at Atherfield Point, walking along to Chale most days; it’s my hobby. I was aware from news reports that there was a possibility of drugs being washed up on West Wight beaches.

“I was there at low tide on Saturday and saw a heavy bag washed up on the beach; it must have weighed 50kg. I unzipped it and found a huge number of packages. It was too heavy for me to drag away. So, to keep it away from any walkers, I split it up into two and dragged the packages up the cliff and covered them with clay to hide them.

“I also took two packets home as proof in case anything went wrong. I emailed the Hants & IW Police Commissioner, Donna Jones, explaining exactly what I had done, but just received an automated reply.

“On Sunday, I went back down to make sure the drugs were still covered. By then, there was a police team nearby and I told them exactly what I had done and took them to the drugs. I also said I had two packets at home and was told to take them to a headquarters which had been set-up near the IW Pearl Centre.

“I went home and the next thing I knew police officers were knocking on my door and said they were arresting me on possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply. They looked embarrassed and asked if they could search my home, so I gave them a guided tour.

“I was then put in the back of a police van and taken to Newport where I was photographed and had my fingerprints taken. I was kept there for four hours and interviewed by a CID officer. After that, I was released without charge and told to contact a neighbour to get me home! I am so angry and have made an official complaint about my treatment.”

Also on Sunday, a local paddle-boarder found another huge package in Freshwater Bay and took it to the Freshwater Independent Lifeboat station. Coxswain, Tony Moore, said: “He came in about noon as we were finishing our regular training session. It took two of us to haul it onto the beach. We reported it immediately and the police came to remove it. Anyone who touched the bag gave the police their contact details. They thanked us and took the bag away.”

A police spokesman confirmed: “When we first received a report that suspicious packages had washed up on the beaches on the morning of Saturday, October 7, it was also reported that there had been two instances of people taking some of the contents, with the men in both instances explaining their intention was to hand this in.

“We have sought to locate these men, with one, a 78-year-old man from Ventnor, initially arrested the following afternoon (October 8), on suspicion of possession with intent to supply a drug of class A. Having made enquiries throughout Sunday afternoon, the man was released with no further action. Our enquiries to locate the second man, whose description we shared on Saturday evening, are ongoing.

“If you do see any suspicious packages or holdalls on the beach, then please continue to call 999 and report this directly and we will ensure this is safely retrieved. We want to thank everyone for their support in doing this so far.”

The second man is described as being in his 60s, of slim build, around 5ft 6ins tall with short grey hair, with a birthmark on the right side of his mouth.

On October 2, a fisherman found holdalls containing hundreds of kilos of powder in the sea off Dorset, at St Aldhelm’s point and Durdle Door. National Crime Agency senior investigating officer, Tracey Lake, said: “We believe this [is] a significant amount of class A drugs which would have originated in South America. A loss of a consignment of this size would represent a significant hit to the criminal networks involved.”