£30k proceeds of crime bill for former commando who used mod van to transport cannabis
- Grant Broadfoot made almost £200,000 supplying drugs as part of a racket involving fellow servicemen
- Broadfoot also used his position as an ammunition storeman at HM Naval Base Faslane to try to sell live bullets.
- A judge has now ordered him to pay back almost £30,000 under the Proceeds of Crime Act
A former commando who used a Ministry of Defense van to supply drugs has been ordered to pay almost £30,000.
A court heard Grant Broadfoot made £177,500 from the illegal racket with his father Ian and fellow soldier Stuart Bryant, 31.
But after a hearing at the Supreme Court in Edinburgh Today it emerged the 30-year-old had just £29,309.15 available.
Lord Tire yesterday ordered the money to be seized.
During proceedings last year, the Supreme Court in Glasgow heard how both Broadfoot and Bryant were caught in June 2020 using a Ministry of Defense van to transport cannabis from England to Scotland.
Former commando Grant Broadfoot used an official Ministry of Defense van to transport drugs from England to Scotland’
The pair were arrested in Glasgow’s Mount Vernon with 30 vacuum bags of drugs following a tip-off.
Broadfoot also used his position as an ammunition storeman at HM Naval Base Faslane to try to sell live bullets.
He was sentenced to five years and three months after pleading guilty to involvement in serious organized crime.
Bryant was jailed for three years and nine months because he was concerned about the supply of cannabis.
Broadfoot’s 62-year-old father pleaded guilty to manufacturing and being concerned in the supply of cannabis and to a charge under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
He was ordered to carry out 225 hours of unpaid work as part of a 27-month community order.
Passing sentence, Lady Stacey told Grant Broadfoot: ‘You were in the Royal Navy and you took advantage of that.’
The court heard how Broadfoot’s property on the Faslane property, near Helensburgh, Argyll and Bute, was raided and a variety of ammunition taken from a Tesco bag.
The crimes took place between November 2019 and June 2020.
The men were brought to justice as part of Operation Venetic, which saw officers gain access to an encrypted telephone service used by criminals.
Both Grant Broadfoot and Bryant served with 43 Commandos based at HM Naval Base Clyde, home to the British nuclear fleet at Faslane.
Following the verdict, the Commandant General of the Royal Marines, Lieutenant General Rob Magowan, said a thorough review of the culture and operations at 43 Commando Royal Marines had since taken place and no wider issues had been found.
