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When Yaroslav Pastukhov, a Vice Media editor in Toronto at the time, gave a clandestine briefing to two drug mules recruited into his large cocaine smuggling scheme, one of the couriers — a former intern at Vice — was so nervous he secretly recorded it on his phone.

Pastukhov’s own voice offering an upbeat sales pitch has now helped to sink him.

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The recording of the meeting, along with details of the arrest and conviction in Australia of five of Pastukhov’s drug couriers, led to his guilty plea Monday and his agreement with a detailed statement of facts outlining his role in the multi-million dollar international drug smuggling operation.

It was Pastukhov’s job as a journalist with Vice that led to his involvement in cocaine smuggling, according to facts entered into the court record and agreed to by Pastukhov.

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He stumbled on the importation scheme while searching for a story for his job at Vice, he said when recruiting the drug couriers.