Eleven UK nationals arrested after alleged smuggling of cannabis worth £5m from Thailand
The 510kg stash of cannabis was found in 28 suitcases at Birmingham Airport.
Eleven Brits have been arrested after cannabis worth £5million was found in suitcases at Birmingham Airport.
The 11 travellers had flown into the UK from Thailand via Paris Charles de Gaulle airport, with the 510kg stash found in 28 suitcases. Those arrested were bailed until November 9.
News of the arrests comes as officials confirmed the amount of cannabis seized from smugglers carrying the drug in suitcases to UK airports has tripled in less than a year.
So far this year about 15 tonnes of the drug have been uncovered at airports, compared with five tonnes in the whole of 2023 and two tonnes in 2022.
A total of 136 suspects were arrested last year, while 378 have been detained so far this year.
Officials from the National Crime Agency (NCA) said overproduction of the drug in countries where it has been legalised and the chance of bigger profits in the British market might explain the rise.
Passengers are being stopped with massive amounts of cannabis in their luggage. Recent cases include Spanish national Fernando Mayans Fuster, 51, who was stopped at Manchester Airport with eight suitcases containing 158 kilos of cannabis after flying in from Los Angeles in May.
He was jailed for three years and four months at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court on July 19. This year around half of those arrested (184) travelled from Thailand, 75 from Canada, and 47 from the US.
There have been reports of couriers being paid up to £10,000 per trip, but they are wrongly told they will escape with a fine if caught. In fact, the maximum penalty for cannabis importation in the UK is 14 years in prison.
Don't miss...
Every ‘painful’ Labour tax rise as UK households lose up to £13,925 [REVEALED]
Ryanair boss calls for 'two-drink limit' law change to stop violence on flights [REPORT]
Putin humiliated as huge attack on Ukraine backfires, killing over 1,200 troops [LATEST]
NCA Director General of Threats James Babbage said: "In some cases it is unclear whether the mules knew what the potential penalties are but in most cases they were operating on behalf of organised criminal gangs.
"And it is those couriers who are running the risk of a potentially life-changing prison sentence.
"Gangs can make significant profits by selling and smuggling perceived high-quality cannabis legally grown in the USA, Canada and Thailand illegally in the UK."
He appealed to anyone who is approached to engage in smuggling to think very carefully about the potential consequences of their actions and the risks they will run.
Mr Babbage said: "We know organised criminals can be persuasive, and offer to pay couriers. But the risks of getting caught are high, and it just isn't worth that risk."
