Ryan Watsford claims Michael Ibrahim directed him to smuggle drugs
A former Sydney real estate agent says he was under the “direction” of Michael Ibrahim when he helped smuggle a massive shipment of MDMA and cigarettes into Australia.
NSW
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Former Sydney real estate agent Ryan Watsford says he was acting under the “direction” of Michael Ibrahim when he helped smuggle a massive shipment of MDMA and cigarettes into Australia.
Watsford is being sentenced in the Downing Centre District Court after pleading guilty to conspiring to smuggle an 800kg shipment of MDMA into Australia from Europe in May 2017 in what turned out to be one of the most successful undercover police operations in Australian history.
He has also pleaded guilty to helping smuggle millions of illegal cigarettes into Sydney.
The ex Cranbrook student’s lawyers told Judge Dina Yehia today the 39-year-old was “under the control” of Michael Ibrahim during the planning phase for the imports.
Watsford’s defence barrister Greg Jones told the court Michael Ibrahim was “capable of using threats and intimidation against his subordinates.”
He told the court Watsford had been “cut out” of the MDMA smuggling plot after March 14, 2017 and received no financial benefit, which contributed to his offending being at the mid to lower end of the seriousness scale.
He asked Judge Yehia to sentence Watsford to an “extended period of parole” meaning he will spend less of his sentence behind bars and be able to reintegrate himself into society.
The Crown prosecutor in the matter disagreed and told the court Watsford was a willing and active participant, putting his offending at the higher end of the scale.
Watsford will find out which explanation Judge Yehia prefers next week after she reserved her decision on how long he will spend behind bars until next Thursday.
The ex Eastern Suburbs real estate agent has also pleaded guilty to charges relating to two other offences.
One includes the smuggling of millions of illegal cigarettes into Australia in three shipments in 2016 and 2017.
The other relates to Watsford using his real estate contacts to have packages of cocaine posted from the US to properties in Sydney’s east in mid 2016. This included a Rose Bay property worth $16.8 million.
Watsford path to jail began when he fell for the charms of an undercover cop who posed as an international smuggler who could guarantee the safe passage of any goods past Australian border authorities.
The undercover, whose identity has been suppressed, told Watsford he had a “door” service for smuggling.
Watsford introduced the undercover to Michael Ibrahim in late 2016 and millions of dollars worth of illegal cigarettes were smuggled into Australia.
By early 2017, the plan turned to importing drugs from Europe with the undercover making the arrangements to pick up the shipments overseas before they were handed to authorities.
Michael Ibrahim has also pleaded guilty to his involvement in the operation and will be sentenced next year.
The pair and 16 others were arrested in a series of multinational raids that began in August 2017.
The court heard Watsford was bashed and had his head shaved when he stole more than $30,000 from Michael Ibrahim in May 2017.
The other punishment Watsford received for stealing the cash made headlines when video emerged of John Ibrahim waxing his eyebrows at a Potts Point beauty salon.
In court today, Watsford’s eyebrows were back to full volume.
Originally published as Ryan Watsford claims Michael Ibrahim directed him to smuggle drugs