Third person sentenced in 'Cocaine Babes' cruise ship controversy

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‘Cocaine babe’ pleads guilty to smuggling $30M drugs on cruise

Known as the “cocaine babe,” a Canadian cruise passenger finally plead guilty to smuggling over 200 pounds of cocaine on a Princess Cruise in 2016. Worth between $21 million to $30 million the drug bust was Australia’s largest to ever take place on a boating vessel.

A third accomplice in the infamous "Cocaine Babes" cruise ship drug-smuggling ring has been sentenced to more than five years in prison for his role in trafficking 207 pounds of cocaine aboard a Princess Cruise voyage in 2016.

On Dec. 19, an Australian judge convicted 63-year-old Andre Tamine to a minimum of five years and seven months behind bars for smuggling what’s estimated to be at least $21 million worth of cocaine in a case that made headlines around the world, News.com.au reports.

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Back in February, Tamine's young, female accomplices, Melina Roberge, age 25, and Isabelle Lagacé, age 30, were crowned the “Cocaine Babes” by U.K. media. (Melina Roberge/Instagram)

Back in February, Tamine's female accomplices, Melina Roberge, age 25, and Isabelle Lagacé, age 30, nicknamed the “Cocaine Babes” by U.K. media, pled guilty in connection with the Aug. 2016 incident, during which the Australian Border Force (ABF) seized more than 200 pounds of cocaine from the group’s cruise ship cabins.

Roberge and her friends were identified as "high risk travelers" by authorities prior to their arrest. (Melina Roberge/Instagram)

According to The Queensland Times, Tamine, Roberge, an escort, and Lagace, who was reported to be a porn star, were enjoying a luxurious seven-week vacation with stops in the U.S., Bermuda, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Auckland, Sydney and more, when the ABF became suspicious of the trio, all from Quebec, Canada.

Identifying the group as “high risk travelers,” ABF officials searched the ship when it docked in Sydney Harbour in late August 2016, and discovered 77 pounds of cocaine in Roberge and Lagacé’s shared cabin, and an additional 130 pounds in Tamine’s room, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

The cocaine, much of it pure, was stuffed into large suitcases that the trio had been able to easily carry on to the massive ocean liner.

The drugs were estimated to be worth anywhere between $21.5 million and $30 million, making it Australia’s largest-ever drug seizure from a boating vessel or aircraft. (Australian Border Force)

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Tamine was supposed to be paid around $158,000 for his role in the crime, the Times reports, though he acknowledged in a court letter that the drugs caused "nothing but hurt and destruction" and he was thankful that the cocaine was “seized and never made it to land".

Tamine since acknowledged in a court letter that the drugs caused "nothing but hurt and destruction" and he was thankful that the cocaine was “seized and never made it to land". (Melina Roberge/Instagram)

In the months since, Lagacé was sentenced to a maximum of seven-and-a-half years in prison after pleading guilty in Nov. 2017. At her sentencing, she claimed she was smuggling the cocaine in order to pay off a $20,000 debt, and expressed remorse for the crime.

In April 2018, Roberge, who admitted she was motivated to smuggle drugs aboard the glam cruise in part for "likes and attention" on Instagram, was sentenced to serve a maximum sentence of eight years. Weeping in the courtroom, she also apologized for her actions during the hearing.

Fox News’ Michael Bartiromo and Amy Lieu contributed to this report.