A Bramley man who tried to smuggle more than 100 kilos of cannabis into the UK via Heathrow Airport has been jailed.
Nathaniel Benson, 45, of Southend Avenue, arrived into the airport on Wednesday 18 September, having flown from Bangkok in Thailand.
He was arrested after Border Force officers located 150 packages in five suitcases.His two children were travelling with him, and a case had been checked in under one of their names.
More than 100 kilos of cannabis was recovered, which would have had a street value of around £2 million if sold on the streets in the UK.
After being interviewed by National Crime Agency investigators Benson was charged with importing class B drugs.
He was sentenced to two years and three months imprisonment at Isleworth Crown Court today (24 October) after pleading guilty at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on 20 September.
A 41-year-old woman from Harrogate, who was travelling with him, was also arrested but later released under investigation.
NCA Senior Investigating Officer Mark Abbott said: “Anyone thinking of smuggling cannabis into the UK should take notice of the sentence given to Nathaniel Benson, who will now spend time behind bars.”
In August the NCA issued a warning to travellers arriving into the UK from Thailand, Canada and the USA that they face jail sentences if caught attempting to smuggle cannabis into the country.
The amount of cannabis seized in the UK so far in 2024 is three times more than the whole of 2023.
Anyone with information on the smuggling of drugs through UK ports is urged to report it, anonymously if they prefer, by calling Border Force’s Customs Hotline on 0800 595 000.
This man is a disgrace, not just because of his crime, but concealing drugs in his kid’s suitcase?
Show’s what his priorities are and what he thinks about his family.