A musician who sailed a catamaran packed with more than 500 kilograms of cocaine from Tahiti to Lake Macquarie in New South Wales for a $500,000 payout has been found guilty.
Craig Lembke, who was dubbed the “cocaine casanova” after it was revealed he’d been dating TV presenter Susie Elelman before his arrest, claimed he didn’t know the cocaine, valued at $245 million, was hidden in the twin hulls of the 13-metre catamaran Skarabej in late 2017.
A Newcastle District Court jury had been deliberating since Friday before today finding the saxophonist and keen sailor guilty of importing a commercial quantity of cocaine.
Lembke’s co-accused, Daniel Percy, was found not guilty.
Judge Jonathon Priestley remanded the 49-year-old for a sentencing hearing on December 16.
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