Hunt still on for alleged Jersey drugs syndicate member who fled Island

EXCLUSIVE

A MAN accused of being the intended recipient of a major drugs shipment from South America remains wanted more than a year after fleeing the Island, the JEP can reveal.

The suspect was jointly charged with Colombian courier Marizel Perlaza Penagos over the importation of heroin and cocaine into Jersey, but left the Island before he could face court in 2025.

Penagos was jailed for five-and-a-half years last May after admitting importing heroin and cocaine into Jersey and possessing more than £16,500 in criminal property. 

The case marked the first time Jersey authorities had encountered couriers travelling directly from South America to the Island. 

During Penagos’ sentencing hearing, prosecuting Crown Advocate Lauren Taylor told the Royal Court that David Samuel Da Conceição Varela was considered to be the intended recipient of the drugs.

Investigators uncovered what they believed to be more than 500 messages between the pair during the operation, with Penagos saving what was understood to be Mr Varela’s contact in her phone under the name “Not Your Business”, the court was told.

Penagos arrived in Jersey on 25 June 2024 carrying heroin in her hand luggage after travelling around 14,000 kilometres from western Brazil via São Paulo and London Heathrow. Her suitcase, which arrived a few days later, contained a kilo of cocaine. 

Crown Advocate Taylor said that investigators believed the messages to contain coded language relating to the drugs. One message from the contact investigators believed to be Mr Varela to Penagos sent on the evening she arrived read: “I will give you the pizza and you give THAT.”

The Royal Court also heard that investigators found a message sent from Penagos after her delayed suitcase was delivered to her hotel, stating: “The girl has already arrived, sweetheart everything is perfect.”

A drugs expert opined that “the girl” – “la niña” – was a codeword for the cocaine shipment, the Crown Advocate said.

When Penagos was sentenced, Advocate Julia-Anne Dix, defending, said her client had been recruited because she was desperate to raise money for a medical operation for her seriously ill son and that “the perpetrators at the top of the chain have evaded justice”.

“Miss Penagos is at the bottom of the chain, yet she is the one who is going to face many years in prison,” Advocate Dix added.

Now, more than a year after Penagos’ sentencing, Jersey Customs and Immigration Service has confirmed to the JEP that they were still seeking to track down Mr Varela.

They said that his arrest warrant “remains active” and that the service would “continue to pursue all avenues open to them to return any suspects that have fled the Island with outstanding arrest warrants in order for them to face justice”.