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7News was there when the men left the court, and we found out more about the case:

Daniel Ortiz reporting
It was all celebration and rejoicing outside the Dangriga Supreme Court after the 6 men were acquitted in the biggest drug case Belize's history.

Their exuberance is understandable; their lives and careers have been tarnished by this accusation, and an acquittal is no guarantee that they've been exonerated in the court of public opinion.

But suspicion aside, their attorneys say that the crown tried them on weak circumstantial evidence which couldn't stand up in court:

Kevin Arthurs - Attorney for the Defence
"One attorney characterized the case as the biggest case of speculation in Belize's history. It is not a light matter, obviously, because you're talking about 168 million dollars in street value, based on the assessment of Mr. Hemsley. But what is absolutely true, and it has been almost accepted by the prosecution in the way they conducted this trial, that they knew that there was not any and sufficient evidence in this case."

Attorney Dickey Bradley outlined of case and actual facts.

Dickey Bradley - Attorney for the Defense
"On the 13th day of November, 2010, 5 persons were travelling in a white van on the Southern Highway after midnight, and they were stopped at a BDF roadblock. And the rest is history, as they would say. An empty plane was found on the Southern Highway, the investigation started immediately after neighbors started hearing a plane. They called the police. Except for Mr. Logan, 5 of these accused persons were in a van. The van was never seen stopping on the Highway. Nobody was seen getting out - anything of that nature. In any event, these persons were charged with abetment to facilitate a plane which brought in over 2000 kilograms of compressed cocaine - and I'll come back to the brought in part - that they merely assisted to make that plane land. That is the allegation; that is the charge. They are not charged with drug trafficking or any other offence in relation to the plane."

The defense did concede that the prosecution and the police worked hard on this case.

Dickey Bradley
"The police had 56 witnesses, of which 35 were listed on the indictment. 2 additional witnesses were called. 2 or 3 - we saw some others here, but they weren't actually called. The judge said that according to his count, it was 30 or 31 witnesses who actually testified."

Good investigation aside, it really didn't matter because crucial evidence linking the men to the crime was inherently missing.

Dickey Bradley
"At the end of the prosecution's case, no witness - or the sum total of the witnesses - had made any link, any connection, had not been able to establish that any of these men, either collectively or individually, had actually done anything in relation to the facilitating the landing of that plane. You can't come to court with speculation. You can't come to court and say, 'Oh, they are police officers, and 3 or 4 of them are in one van, so they must be up to something. You can't convict people on that in this country. We still have some very important legal and constitutional principles."

Kevin Arthurs
"I think that there was no surprise today - and I've been hearing from my client - I don't think that the prosecution was surprised. They knew, and in all good faith they will say so, that in fact, they didn't quite come up to proof in this matter."

And throughout the ordeal, the defendants never underestimated the gravity of the charge.

Dickey Bradley
"40 bales of cocaine was found quite a distance from where the plane was on the highway. An additional 40 bales were found. Both of these were found in Pine Ridge areas covered with coohoon leaves. We saw photographs of the cocaine. What was also brought to court, were - I think - 2 batteries or 4 batteries, because batteries were on the highway which gave current to lights, I guess as some kind of impromptu runway."

The men had a plausible explanation to explain as to why they were on the highway at that time.

Dickey Bradley
"One of the defendants had made arrangements with a lady because they were going to a wedding in Punta Gorda, and this was being arranged from ahead long before any plane coming or anything like that. So, although in terms of finding an empty plane, and finding a lot of cocaine a mile or 2 away being evidence of something, it is not evidence that the accused persons did anything to land any plane. These men were stopped at the BDF roadblock by Lieutenant Rehelio Ramirez, and he was in conversation with Officer Hemsley, the Commander of ADU. But while these men were being held, the plane was in the air."

And while no one can complain about the thorough nature of the investigation, the defendants claim that evidence tampering was also factor that they had to overcome.

Dickey Bradley
"I've been instructed by the police officers just now to say this because they are hurt over this matter. Their family is here, and they are hurt. And they evidence is that they took Harold Usher to his house in Corozal, and they found certain items, a green and yellow police belt, which is peculiar to the police ranks, a military webbing, which is something that you carry to put your pouch, water, or other things in, and a military bag at his house in Corozal, and then, witnesses are coming to this court to say that it was found in the white van, where they were. That is unfair, but even if that was so. Even, let's say, we jumped over that - and people feel hurt when they see that there's tampering with evidence - had we gone to the jury, we would have made a big issue over these matters. But, even if there was a yellow belt in the van, how does that help me bring in a plane in the country?"

And with all of that, these men are still not fully vindicated. As a result, no decisions have been made about the way forward.

Dickey Bradley
"They are not totally out of it yet because one - there are some strange things which has happened. But one piece of evidence - well, let me back up and tell you. On the following day, November 14, 2010, early in the morning, a police officer said that he climbed into the white van, looked around and found one round of ammunition, a 5.56 round of ammunition. He was very clear; we asked him over and over. Later on, another police say they were searching and they found a 0.223 round of ammunition. And still further down, some days thereafter, when the forensic people were going through the van, they found a 0.223 round of ammunition. I don't know how we got to 3 rounds of ammunition, but on November 14, 2010, the persons in the van were charged for being in possession of that one round of ammunition. So, that case is still pending before the Magistrate's Court. And then, being serving officers, the issue of being on interdiction, the proper procedure is that they are suspended from duty pending the outcome of this case."

And if you're only now hearing of Victor Logan, a civilian, who police were trying to link to the other 5 lawmen in the facilitation of the landing of the drug plane, we are too... Apparently, he was charged separately from the other 5 officers on January 7, 2011.

Victor Logan's name was initially called early on in the investigation of this matter, but he did not make himself available to police. His attorney, Kevin Arthurs, was able to get evidence admitted in court, which proved that he was not in the country when the bust was made. With that, the court was satisfied that he was not implicated in this crime either.

7News contacted the DPP, Cheryl Lynn Vidal, who told us this evening that the lead crown counsel in the matter, Cecil Ramirez, has already filed an appeal of the judge's decision.