The ringleader of a plot to smuggle £76 million of cocaine into Britain from Ecuador in consignments of bananas is appealing against his 20-year prison sentence.

James Stevenson, 59, known as The Iceman, pleaded guilty to two charges mid-trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

He admitted directing a serious criminal offence of importation of cocaine and being involved in organised crime through production and supply of etizolam, known as street valium.

He was jailed for 20 years when he was sentenced at the same court on October 2.

Crates of bananas
The drugs were found in bananas which arrived at the Port of Dover between May and September 2020 (COPFS/PA)

Five other members of the gang were jailed for a total of 29 years.

The Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh confirmed on Tuesday that an appeal against sentence has been lodged on behalf of Stevenson.

A judge will now consider whether the appeal can be heard.

The High Court in Glasgow previously heard Border Force officers at the Port of Dover seized 18 consignments of bananas addressed to Glasgow Fruit Market between May and September 2020.

They contained cocaine with a purity of 73%, weighing almost a tonne and with a street value of £76 million.

Crates of bananas with foil packages on top
Cocaine was found in foil packages inside crates of bananas (COPFS/PA)

The plot was uncovered after French law enforcement officers infiltrated the encrypted EncroChat network in April 2020.

The court was also told delivery was being arranged of more than 13 million street valium pills, and during a raid in Rochester, Kent, in June 2020, equipment capable of producing 258,000 pills per hour was discovered.

Sentencing Stevenson on October 2, Judge Lord Ericht said he had “directed a complex operation for the importation and supply of cocaine” and “played a leading role in manufacturing street valium”, with 13.5 million pills seized by police.

Five other men were also sentenced last week after admitting involvement.

David Bilsland, 68, Paul Bowes, 53, and Lloyd Cross, 32, were each jailed for six years.

Stevenson’s stepson, Gerard Carbin, 45, was sentenced to seven years and Ryan McPhee, 34, was given a four-year prison sentence.