'The Baccy Boat' businessman reveals all in new book

Updated



Phil Berriman will tell all about his offshore off-licence in his new book.

The sailor avoided taxes by setting up a shop selling untaxed cigarettes and spirits on his boat which was anchored 13 miles of the UK coast.

Mr Berriman, 57, settled his boat, The Rich Harvest, just off the coast of Hartlepool and received custom from dozens of people travelling out in private boats, the Daily Mail reports.

The e-book 'The Baccy Boat' will reveal how Berriman was caught by customs officers.

He maintains that he was acting within UK law as there is a 12-mile limit, and The Rich Harvest was anchored 13 miles off shore.

But, just three months after he started trading, customs officers seized and destroyed the goods on board.

He was found to be in possession of £120,000 worth of cigarettes and alcohol, the Hartlepool Mail reports.

A High Court judge found no issue with the customs officer's actions despite Berriman's protests.

He said: "I've waited a long time to put the record straight. But I'm delighted with what I've achieved.

The cunning salesman did not face any charges as he did not technically break the law.

This is not Mr Berriman's first foray into writing however, he previously wrote about his prosecution for smuggling cannabis in his first e-book, 'The Waccy Baccy Boat', the Hartlepool Mail reports.

The father-of-three was arrested in 1994 after his yacht was found piled high with 3.5 tons of cannabis; the UK's biggest-ever haul.

Despite this, he was let off all charges after the courts heard how he'd been under pressure to smuggle the drugs from Tyneside gangsters who had threatened to kill his family.

Berriman said: "This should put them right. I've waited a long time to put the record straight. But I'm delighted with what I've achieved. My inbox is going wild with compliments.

"The smuggling, voyage, remand and court case is fact. I've packed the book with stories, but the names have been changed to protect the guilty."


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