Product Description

"Three fishermen from the Scottish Highlands received a total of 55 years in prison after being found guilty of smuggling into Britain cocaine worth more than 100 million - the biggest drugs seizure by customs officials in the country's history" - "The Times". Throughout the '70s and '80s, the Highland fishing village of Ullapool was a tough place to make a living. With huge Eastern bloc factory ships buying up the local catch, however, there was money to be made for those who had the stomach for it. Renowned for its lawlessness - drinking and fighting offered the Friday-night entertainment - it was no place for the squeamish. One man was gaining quite a reputation for himself locally - Chris Howarth, known to everyone as 'Crazy Chris'. In the summer of '89, he met an expatriate Scot living in Malaga (referred to as 'Mr X' in the subsequent trial) who offered him some work of a dubious nature and set in motion a chain of events that would lead to what would be the UK's largest ever drugs haul. Around the same time, working on a tip-off from a local informant and intelligence from their Spanish counterparts, Customs and Excise became aware of a major plot to smuggle huge amounts of drugs into the UK around Ullapool. As a result of this information, Operation Klondyke was born. For the next 18 months, Howarth and Mr X would be under constant surveillance. The trail would lead from Ullapool and the east coast of Scotland to the Costa del Sol, Gibraltar and Venezuela. It would uncover distribution channels from Colombia's notorious Cali cartel to Europe and North America, operated by ruthless Spanish smuggling outfits. And it would finally lead to the UK's most valuable seizure of drugs on a Scottish road as it was being transported down to the lucrative London market - half a tonne of virtually pure Colombian cocaine. "White Gold" at last tells the inside story of Operation Klondyke - seen through the eyes of both the hunters and the hunted.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #219629 in Books
• Published on: 2005-11-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Review
"'Three fishermen from the Scottish Highlands received a total of 55 years in prison after being found guilty of smuggling into Britain cocaine worth more than [pound]100 million - the biggest drugs seizure by customs officials in the country's history' - The Times"

FHM magazine, January 2004
A great story, chock full of detail and hilarious characters... Whiskey Galore with class As.

Ross-Shire Journal
A thrilling tale, seen from the eyes of both the hunters and the hunted...

Customer Reviews

white gold
Gotta say, as a native of Ullapool, the stories been a bit glamourised, but still a great read.

Growing up we all knew that our some of our mates fathers were in jail for drugs, but it was never talked about so its really interesting to actually hear what really went on that year.

White Gold - a great Xmas pressie for yourself or a friend..
I don't normally go in for true crime books but,
following a recommendation from a friend, I thought
I'd give White Gold a go. I'm glad I did - I couldn't
put it down. It's one of those books that you find
yourself snatching every possible moment to read - on
the Tube, in your lunch hour - it's a real page
turner. The book is obviously based on months of
research - Costello cites court records, laws, social
work reports - but he has pulled them all together in
such a way as to make you feel you are almost reading
a thriller, with a polished, pacy plot and crackling
dialogue.
What's really clever about it is that you get the
story from varuious perspectives, including the
smugglers, the police and Customs, so it's never
black-and-white.

By the last few chapters, it becomes completely
unputdownable as you are desperate to find out what
happens. It made me think about the stories behind the
headlines on drugs busts and in his thought-provoking
final chapter, Costello puts the whole question of our
drugs laws into context. Brilliant stuff - I'll be
reading it again on holiday and now know what to buy for friends and family for Christmas.

The best true crime book I've ever read
Costello has got hold of a great story, but what makes this book unique is his deft skill with words. His dry, sardonic wit comes through on every page. Aside from his writing style, this tale of Britain's biggest every drugs heist is a fantastic yarn; it's fast-paced and bowls along to a gripping climax. I'd recommend this book to anyone - hell, I gave it to three of my friends for Christmas.