Ben May fled Britain in June 2020 after an alleged accomplice was found with two bags containing 12kgs of cocaine.
A British national has been deported back to the United Kingdom (UK) after eight months in custody in South Africa.
Benjamin Leslie May was arrested in Cape Town in February 2025 after fleeing Britain in June 2020.
May was linked to a cocaine smuggling operation and was wanted in his home country on two charges of conspiracy to supply class A narcotics.
On the run since 2020
Investigations in Europe led a court in Wales to issue a warrant of arrest for May in September 2023.
May was linked to offences allegedly committed between August 2019 and June 2020.
He was one of seven suspects linked to the cocaine smuggling operation, with the other six having since been arrested and sentenced.
May is accused of working with a Liverpool-based accomplice to smuggle wholesale amounts of cocaine into the UK and transporting the cash proceeds to London.
“May was identified as the user of an encrypted EncroChat device responsible for arranging the distribution of cocaine to various contacts around the country, including in South Wales.
“He used the Encrochat handles ‘illusivebone’ and ‘splitcactus. On 6 June 2020, a drug courier was arrested while transporting 12kg of cocaine to South Wales,” confirmed Western Cape NPA spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila.
Two 6kg black bags of cocaine were found containing May’s fingerprints, with him leaving Britain shortly afterwards.
May is believed to have fled England for France via the Eurotunnel on 7 June 2020, before travelling to South Africa by undisclosed means.
Above: Wanted British drug dealer Ben May in custody in Cape Town. Picture: Supplied / Interpol
Tightening net
Roughly 18 months after the warrant was issued in Wales, Western Cape authorities were contacted by counterparts in Europe.
Acting on a European Convention on Extradition request, the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court issued a warrant for May’s arrest on 17 February 2025 and he was arrested the following day.
At subsequent bail application hearings, the court heard that May applied for a new passport using a physical address in Spain.
Prosecutors argued that May had a history of evasion and failure to surrender to authorities, making any surrender of his passport a meaningless deterrent.
“He had the means to survive whilst on the run from authorities, all the while continuing his criminal enterprise,” said Ntabazalila, relaying the court’s rationale.
May’s bail application was officially denied on 23 May, and he had remained in custody until Thursday evening when he was sent back to Britain to face prosecution.
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