Elaborate Jury Tampering Plot Unravels as Trio Sentenced
Three individuals have been handed prison sentences for orchestrating a sophisticated scheme aimed at freeing convicted drug traffickers by fabricating claims of jury bribery. The plot targeted associates who had been found guilty of attempting to smuggle £45 million worth of MDMA to Australia.
The Criminal Conspiracy Unfolds
William Todd, 61, a convicted murderer serving two life sentences, masterminded the operation from behind bars. His accomplices were Danny Thomas, 46, of Shinfield, Reading, and Sheree Avard, 41, of Woking, Surrey. Their goal was to secure the release of Danny Brown, 58, and Stefan Baldauf, 66, along with four other men convicted in December 2022 for smuggling 448kg of MDMA concealed within an industrial digger.
Brown received a 26-year sentence while Baldauf was jailed for 28 years following a thorough National Crime Agency investigation. The conspiracy began in June 2022 when false reports were submitted to Kingston Crown Court alleging that five jurors had been bribed to convict the defendants.
Multiple Attempts to Derail Justice
The initial false claims backfired when investigators discovered that two of the named jurors had been discharged months earlier. Undeterred, the conspirators devised a more elaborate scheme in August 2022. Thomas, who had secretly recorded jurors' names during court proceedings, recruited Avard to contact the court under false pretenses.
Avard, using the alias Ioana Andrei, contacted Brown's solicitor claiming she had a brief relationship with a juror who confessed to being pressured into conviction. When they realized this story might be exposed as fraudulent, the conspirators created an even more sophisticated deception.
International Deception Unraveled
The group arranged for a fake passport in the name Ioana Andrei to be given to a woman in Romania, who was paid along with a corrupt solicitor to sign an official deposition supporting their false claims. This document was then forwarded to Brown's lawyer in hopes of having the convictions overturned.
Their scheme began to unravel when Thomas was arrested at Heathrow Airport in November 2022 while arriving from Dubai. His mobile phone contained crucial evidence including recorded conversations and messages that linked him directly to Todd. Investigators discovered Todd's secret phone concealed in a DVD player in his prison cell, saved under the alias "Ari Gold" from the television series Entourage.
Sentencing and Official Statements
At Southwark Crown Court, Thomas received three years and four months imprisonment while Avard was sentenced to one year, both having admitted conspiring to pervert the course of justice. Todd was convicted by a jury and sentenced to seven years for the same charge.
Steve Ahmet, senior investigating officer at the NCA's Anti-Corruption Unit, stated: "This case demonstrates the extraordinary lengths that high-harm criminals will go to in order to cheat justice and why they represent the most significant corruption threat to fundamental pillars of our society. The offenders were determined to help their criminal associates walk free, but our team constructed an unassailable case against them."
Nicola Rutter from the Crown Prosecution Service added: "Jury tampering undermines a cornerstone of our justice system. While they didn't actually interfere with the jury, they made false reports alleging jury tampering. This has resulted in their imprisonment. I extend my gratitude to officers from the National Crime Agency for thoroughly investigating their plot, enabling the CPS to bring this successful prosecution."
Background of the Original Case
The original convictions resulted from Operation Venetic, the NCA-led response to the takedown of encrypted communications platform EncroChat. Brown inadvertently helped investigators by sending a picture of his French Bulldog 'Bob' to Baldauf that revealed his partner's phone number on the dogtag. Baldauf similarly compromised himself by sending a photograph of a brass door sign that showed his reflection.
This case highlights the determined efforts of organized crime groups to manipulate the justice system and the robust investigative work required to counter such threats to judicial integrity.
