TLDR

  • UK prosecutors are seeking to seize all assets connected to Craig Costello.
  • Authorities have tracked over £137,000 in cash and digital assets linked to drug trafficking.
  • Investigators have identified £4,012.21 in Ethereum Classic registered under Costello’s name.
  • Costello’s five-bedroom home was sold under a proceeds of crime order.
  • Luxury vehicles and quad bikes were also confiscated and sold by the authorities.

Prosecutors in the United Kingdom are pursuing the seizure of all assets tied to Craig Costello, a convicted drug trafficker. According to court records, these assets include his digital wallets, properties, vehicles, and cash found in various accounts. Prosecutors believe these assets were acquired using illegal drug proceeds accumulated between 2015 and 2016.

Prosecutors Trace Drug Profits to Craig Costello

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) confirmed they are working to confiscate over £137,000 in cash and digital assets linked to Costello. Authorities have already liquidated a five-bedroom property, luxury vehicles, and quad bikes seized during the investigation. Investigators state these assets were purchased using illicit funds from international drug distribution.

Prosecutors allege that Costello made around £1.6 million in profits while managing the Teesside arm of a global trafficking network. The court heard he worked with John Watson, Steven Beazley, and Dave Wright under the control of Jon Moorby and Lance Kennedy. Surveillance by Cleveland Police in 2015 and 2016 helped confirm their operations and movements.

CPS representatives noted that Costello’s financial gains matched a pattern typical of narcotics trafficking enterprises. “Payments into his bank account align with drug trafficking revenue,” one prosecutor stated during a Durham Crown Court hearing. The authorities traced transactions and digital asset holdings they argue are directly linked to those illegal operations.

Crypto Holdings Identified as Part of Drug Profits

Court documents show investigators traced £4,012.21 in Ethereum Classic to Costello’s name using financial forensics. They believe the cryptocurrency originated from funds obtained through class A drug sales. Prosecutors now aim to include these assets in the confiscation order scheduled for early this year.

Costello allegedly used cryptocurrency to hide profits, channelling money through multiple UK-based investments. The CPS is examining other potential hidden wallets that may not yet have been identified. However, the full scope of his digital assets remains under review as authorities continue their investigation.

The prosecutors had already secured a sale order for his house, which generated equity valued at £107,722. The final proceeds from the sale are yet to be finalized due to an unresolved divorce. Victoria Costello, his estranged wife, claims she contributed to the home’s deposit with personal funds.

Divorce Complicates Final Asset Confiscation

Court filings indicate the divorce proceedings between Craig and Victoria Costello have been paused until financial matters are resolved. Prosecutor Steve McNally told the court that Mrs. Costello’s claim of contributing to the cash deposit must be assessed before any division. “We need to resolve ownership and contributions before finalizing the confiscation,” McNally said.

The Royal Bank of Scotland has received full payment for the remaining mortgage on the property. A debt to a government agency tied to the home has also been cleared. These payments pave the way for court approval of the remaining asset seizure.

Costello, who fled to the Middle East during his 2021 trial, was captured while driving in [location redacted]. He was extradited to the UK in 2022 and is currently serving a nine-year sentence. The court found him guilty of conspiracy to supply class A drugs.

The former associates Watson, Beazley, and Wright already had their confiscation orders enforced in earlier hearings. Together, they returned under £300,000 from an estimated £4 million in criminal profits. Costello is the last of the group to face financial recovery proceedings.

Reports confirm that Lance Kennedy oversaw around £17 million in cocaine shipments from Spain and Belgium into the UK. The drugs entered through various routes, including chartered helicopters and ground couriers. These shipments were directed toward Merseyside and the North East, including Teesside.