James Blake Blee arrested over alleged plot to import $20m of cocaine from ship

A tour operator alleged to have been involved in a $20 million cocaine haul discovered after a scuba diver was found dead in Newcastle harbour has been arrested trying to leave the country.

A superyacht tour operator alleged to have been involved in a $20 million cocaine haul discovered after a scuba diver was found dead in Newcastle harbour has been arrested trying to leave the country.

James Blake Blee was ­refused bail after being taken into custody by Australian Federal Police just moments before he was to board a plane to Singapore on Wednesday.

Blee, 62, runs tours of the Whitsundays and also auditioned for the reality TV show Survivor in 2019.

A major police investigation involving NSW and federal police was launched on Monday after the diver was found dead drifting in the water with blocks of wrapped cocaine found nearby.

Blee will appear in Cairns Magistrates Court again on Friday, where it is expected NSW Police will apply for his ­extradition to face charges of importing a large commercial quantity of prohibited substance.

Whitsundays superyacht tour operator James Blake Blee is expected to be extradited to NSW on Friday.

Prosecutor Sophie Gorrick sought an adjournment on Thursday while Blee complained bitterly about the possibility he would be spending the weekend in custody, and interrupted court proceedings to address the court via video link from the watch-house.

“I’m sitting here since yesterday, five in the afternoon — I’ve never, I haven’t been able to get in contact with my ­family, they may or may not know where I am,” he said.

Magistrate Bevan Hughes advised Blee to speak directly to his solicitor, but he continued. “Then I’ve got the extradition that will go on tomorrow and I can’t get out, and extradition will be on Friday, which means I will travel some time on Friday and it may not end there, I will go in (custody) Saturday and Sunday so that’s four times 24 hours, potentially to Monday,” Blee said.

Ms Gorrick told the court NSW Police were en route to Cairns to apply for Blee’s ­extradition.

Mr Hughes ruled Blee would appear again at the court at 9.30am on Friday.

Police remove the man’s body from the short near the Port of Newcastle.

Blee was arrested after workers found an unconscious diver floating in the water at Kooragang 2 Berth at the Port of Newcastle near a large waterproof sack of ­cocaine on Monday morning.

He was wearing a ­Sharkskin scuba wetsuit and a high-end rebreather.

Paramedics performed CPR on the man but he died at the scene.

Police believe the man, who has since been identified as a foreign national, was a drug mule attempting to retrieve about 50kg of cocaine, which has an estimated street value of more than $20 million, from the inside of the hull of the ARETI.GR cargo ship.

It is believed the diver got some of the drugs ashore ­before his death.

Australian Federal Police and Australian Border Force are assisting NSW Police in their investigation, with one source saying it is not ­believed the diver arrived in Australia on the ship from ­Argentina, but rather had been based in NSW for some time doing similar diving jobs for criminal syndicates.

“It (the cocaine) was hidden in the sea chest, it’s a part of the ship that sucks up water inside to be used for cooling,” one officer said.

“We think this was this man’s job and he’s done it ­before, it definitely wasn’t their first time.”

An empty “bail”, used to carry the cocaine blocks out of the ship, was found along the Hunter River on Tuesday.

The ARETI.GR docked at the Port of Newcastle about 5.30pm on Sunday, completing its voyage of more than a month from Argentina.