Former Australian horse trainer John Nikolic has been sentenced to 23 years in jail for importing cocaine into Fiji on his luxury yacht.
He and wife Yvette were arrested after Fijian authorities discovered more than $A20 million worth of drugs, along with two guns, on their vessel, Shenanigans, as it arrived in Port Denara in June.
While Ms Nikolic was acquitted on all charges, Mr Nikolic was last week found guilty of drug importation, possession, and failure to declare arms and ammunitions to a customs officer following a trial at the High Court in Suva.
Justice Daniel Goundar on Friday handed down a sentence of 23 years' imprisonment with no parole for 18 years, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution said.
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While prosecutors called for a sentence of at least 20 years as a deterrent, News Corp reports Mr Nikolic's lawyers said he had tested positive for a gene that causes the degenerative Huntington's disease and was at risk of developing it years to come.
He and Yvette had been travelling across the Pacific and stopped at Fiji after visiting Colombia, on their way home to the Gold Coast, drawing the suspicions of customs officers who raided the boat and found 10 blocks of cocaine, the court heard during the trial.
Mr Nikolic had claimed sole responsibility during the search, pointing officers to more hidden cocaine, before attempting to take his own life in an overdose after asking to use the bathroom, prosecutors said.
Justice Goundar last month ruled Ms Nikolic had no case to answer because the evidence against her was circumstantial. She has since returned to Australia.
Mr Nikolic was in 2015 banned from racing for nine months for doping a horse.
