Nigel Farage's aide arrested in FBI sting after 'trying to extort drug barons on dark web' | UK | News | Daily Express

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George Cottrell (right) was arrested as be got off a flight with Nigel Farage by FBI agents

George Cottrell was handcuffed and taken away by US police as he disembarked a plane with the former UKIP boss in Chicago.

The 22-year-old, who runs Mr Farage’s private office, has been charged with 21 offences including attempted extortion, money laundering and fraud on the dark web and is currently awaiting trial.

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He stands accused of offering to launder money for drug traffickers after advertising his services on the secretive section of the internet, which is popular with hackers, paedophiles and terrorists as it allows users to remain untraceable by hiding the location of the users’ computer.

Cottrell, whose former glamour model mother Fiona Cottrell reportedly used to date Prince Charles, was caught out after allegedly offering his services to undercover FBI agents posing as drug traffickers.

He was arrested last month as he was returning from the Republican Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, with Mr Farage.

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George Cottrell faces 21 charges relating to extortion and money laundering on the dark web

US court documents allege Cottrell was offering money laundering services on the dark web using the alias ‘Bill’.

Undercover FBI agents contacted him in 2014 and Cottrell offered to launder their cash for a fee in return for “complete anonymity and security” via his offshore accounts, according to the court papers.

He allegedly met with the agents in Las Vegas where he offered his services for a fee of £15,500, the documents allege.

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George Cottrell's mother, Fiona, is rumoured to have previously dated Prince Charles

Cottrell then reportedly attempted to blackmail what he thought were druglords to the tune of £62,000 in the form of online currency Bitcoin, claiming he would go to the authorities if they refused to pay.

But the court documents claim he had a “serious, years-long gambling problem, which inherently suggests a strong possibility of irrational risk taking”.

US officers believed Cottrell posed “a serious flight risk” and have therefore remanded him in custody.

Nigel Farage knew nothing of Cottrell’s alleged offences and was given no information about his aide’s arrest and travelled the final leg of his journey from Chicago to Heathrow alone.

An FBI spokesman in Ohio confirmed that George Swinten Cottrell was arrested on July 22 and was due to be extradited to Phoenix, Arizona. 

A Ukip spokesman said: “George was an unpaid and enthusiastic volunteer for the party over the period of the referendum.

“We are unaware of the details of the allegations excepting that they date from a time before he was directly involved in the party.”

Cottrell’s mother was the Penthouse ‘pet of the month’ in October 1973, under the pseudonym Frances Cannon, describing herself as “daughter of a landowner”. 

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http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/699581/Nigel-Farage-George-Cottrell-dark-web-drug-extortion-money-UKIP-America-FBI