Drug lord's girlfriend cleared of involvement in £500k importation plot

Wednesday 23 January 2019

A Merseyside woman, whose romantic birthday getaway turned out to be a meet-up between her drug smuggling boyfriend and local gang members in Jersey, has been cleared of involvement in a £500,000 plot to import cannabis into the island.

April Daisy Hodges (27) was cleared of the charges by two Jurats yesterday after taking to the witness stand in Royal Court to give evidence in the trial against her.

She had denied one charge of being involved in importing drugs. 

The prosecution, led by Crown Advocate Simon Thomas, said that Ms Hodges "knowingly involved herself" in the supply of cannabis in Jersey between September and December 2017, as part of an organised drugs gang that her boyfriend, Neil Heskin, was part of, along with several other "seasoned criminals."

Ms Hodges' alleged co-conspirators John' O'Connor, Alan Smitton, David Arrowsmith, Paul Howes and Norman Templeton-Brown had all pleaded guilty to the same charge she faced, and are awaiting sentencing.

Pictured: Ms Hodges' alleged co-conspirators have admitted a conspiracy to supply cannabis bars in Jersey.

Answering questions from her lawyer, Advocate Sarah Dale, Ms Hodges said she knew nothing of Heskin's conspiracy to supply drugs, stating that she had never discussed drugs with Heskin or heard him discuss drugs with others.

Ms Hodges denied seeing any paperwork or packages being passed between her boyfriend and Templeton-Brown, a meeting which was observed by surveillance officers.

She also denied having called Smitton or O'Connor, explaining that Heskin had made the call from her phone. She said she had lent her bank card to Heskin without asking why he needed it. "We were in a local pub with friends. Neil asked me if he could use my bank card and phone to book a flight, that’s all I recall," Ms Hodges said.

During cross examination, Ms Hodges admitted that Heskin had told her he had been in prison before, but denied asking why or for how long. The Crown Advocate asked Ms Hodges why she didn't ask Heskin why he had spent time in prison as she was planning to move to Jersey with him. "It wasn't something that bothered me at the time," she replied.

In fact, Heskin had spent six-and-a-half years in prison for the attempted smuggling of cannabis resin worth £400,000 in 2005.

Ms Hodges later told Court that she never discussed money with Heskin, who was self-employed and paying for the flat they shared. Ms Hodges denied that her paying cash into her UK Barclays account was an attempt to see if Heskin could cash money into her account without raising questions. 

Pictured: Ms Hodges denied ever talking about money with her boyfriend Neil Heskin.

Although she said the weekend they spent in Jersey was Heskin's birthday treat for her, Ms Hodges said she didn't question why they kept meeting his friends in pubs and restaurants during that time. Speaking of Smitton, she said: "He was a friend I thought he [Heskin] wanted to catch up." 

The Crown Advocate put to Ms Hodges that when Heskin booked flights for O'Connor with her bank card, it hadn't been a spur of the moment decision as she had put enough money to cover the fare on her account two days before. She denied having organised it.

Ms Hodges answered several of the Crown Advocate's questions by "I don't know" or "I don't recall" which he argued was an attempt to distance herself from what was happening. She denied that.

Ms Hodges' trial, which took place under the direction of Royal Court Commissioner Julian Clyde-Smith, came to a close yesterday as Jurats Crill and Pitman cleared her of the charge.