Kent-based international drug traffickers have been jailed after £4.3 million worth of meth was intercepted on its way to Australia.

Kevin Filkins, from Sevenoaks, and Robert Hamilton, of Orpington, have been sent to prison for their roles in the operation.

Yvonne Stewart, 55, from Croydon, has also been locked up.

This came after 24kg of crystal meth was seized by the Australian border force and police who established that the shipment had come from the UK.

An investigation launched in January last year by the Organised Crime Partnership (OCP) – a joint National Crime Agency and Met Police unit.

Investigators discovered the drugs had been sent from Croydon on June 25, 2021.

CCTV images identified Stewart, 55, who was working in the cargo sector at the time and was responsible for the security inspection of the item.

The images also captured Filkins, 54, sending a shipment labelled ‘two glass Buddhas’ to New South Wales, Australia.

This package only contained drugs which were not concealed. This proved Stewart had not checked the contents.

Phone records showed that, at key times, Stewart had been on the phone with Hamilton, 53, who in turn had been in touch with Filkins.

Hamilton acted as the middle man putting Filkins in touch with Stewart who could facilitate the exportation of the drugs as a corrupt insider.

Filkins’ phone and vehicle were also found to have travelled from his home address to the vicinity of the cargo centre the same morning.

Officers also identified that the trio had previously sent two other shipments to Australia on June 2 and 24, 2021.

The named senders on all three shipments were individuals who had had their passports stolen, one of which was paid for using a card registered to one of those individuals.

This card, along with one of the stolen passports, were found in a search of Filkins’ home.

All three were found guilty at Croydon Crown Court on January 13, 2023 and returned to the same court yesterday (May 31) for sentencing.

Filkins, of Deerleap Lane, Knockholt, Sevenoaks and Stewart, of York Road, South Croydon were slapped with a 12-year sentence.

Hamilton, of Doveney Close, Orpington, has been given 13 and a half years of jail time.

Detective Superintendent Callum Hughes, AFP Senior Officer in London, said the convictions should “serve as a warning” to criminals.

He added: “The risk of lengthy imprisonment far outweighs the short-term benefits of your actions.

"The AFP through its officers based in London has excellent relationships with UK law enforcement agencies such as the NCA and the chances of any group or individual being identified and prosecuted for this type of criminal behaviour has never been higher."

Richard Smith, from the OCP, added: “This organised crime group sought to make huge profits by trafficking dangerous drugs to Australia.

“They used Stewart’s inside knowledge of the cargo industry to try to ensure their shipments made it overseas.

“We worked closely with the Australian Federal Police to dismantle this criminal supply chain and protect the public in both countries from the impact of the illegal drugs trade.”