A young Polish man in the United Kingdom was sentenced to two years in a young offenders institution after pleading guilty to trafficking almost £100,000 (4.3 million baht) of cannabis into Newcastle International Airport in the North-East of England. He claimed he was coerced into the illicit operation by a threatening organised crime syndicate.
On August 30, Border Force officials at Newcastle Airport became suspicious of Arkadiusz Golab, as he touched down on a flight from Dubai.
A thorough search of the 20 year old man’s luggage unveiled 40 hefty packages of cannabis, tipping the scales at 23.6 kilos with a market value of £94,000.
During proceedings at Newcastle Crown Court, prosecutor Neil Pallister made known that Golab journeyed from Manchester to Thailand, allegedly on orders from a crime network tasked with the retrieval of a mysterious package.
Given a mobile phone and flight papers, he was instructed to buy a Thai SIM card, hop into a taxi, and head to a specified hotel in bustling Bangkok.
At this hotel, Golab crossed paths with three individuals he believed were tied to the criminal enterprise. Several other men were also allegedly in on the gig, each receiving £100 (4,300 baht) daily to ferry packages back to the UK, said Pallister.
“The defendant confessed he was approached multiple times to travel to Thailand for a pickup. Initially, he refused but eventually gave in.
“Just before departure, another phone and return flight details were handed to him. At the airport, a crime syndicate member presented him with a loaded suitcase, instructing him to retrieve it upon arrival in Newcastle.”
Upon his capture, Golab admitted he was promised £2,000 for successfully delivering the contraband to UK-based criminals. The young man from Gunby Road, Scunthorpe, pleaded guilty to evading restrictions on cannabis importation and was sentenced to two years in a young offenders institution.
Kelly Clarke, his defence lawyer, painted Golab as a pawn in the crime syndicate’s game.
“The defendant has asserted from the get-go he was pressured into this, it was far from voluntary. They were monitoring his family and issuing threats, hence his compliance.
“Hoping it would be a one-time ordeal and eager to be left alone, he carried out the instructions. With no prior convictions and abstaining from drug use, he’s expressed deep regret over falling in with the wrong crowd. The defendant remains remorseful for becoming ensnared in the nefarious plot.”
Newcastle Evening Chronicle reported that Golab was sent to a young offenders institution for two years for the fraudulent evasion of the prohibition on the importation of cannabis.
The trafficking of cannabis from Thailand to the UK has become something of a phenomenon this year. Drug barons are offering drug traffickers an all-expenses paid holiday in the Land of the Smiles and a cash pay out for the illegal exercise.
Last week a British man was caught returning through Manchester Airport customs with two suitcases full of cannabis from Thailand. The alleged British drug mule, Ahmed Sohail, who claimed he went to Thailand to lose some weight, ended up losing much more than he bargained for.
Stopped by eagle-eyed Border Force officials, the 26 year old drug trafficker was carrying two suitcases that piqued their suspicion. While Sohail insisted he had been on an indulgent eight-day jaunt in Bangkok, a scan revealed his luggage contained not just holiday mementoes but 40 kilogrammes of the class B drug along with a crafty Apple tracking device.
Three weeks ago, Netflix star Olga Bednarska escaped a long prison sentence despite being nabbed at Manchester Airport smuggling cannabis worth £150,000 (6.75 million baht) through customs.
The star of Netflix’s hit reality show Too Hot to Handle, found herself entangled in a scandalous drug-smuggling affair after Manchester Airport customs officers intercepted the 27 year old, as she returned from Thailand, and uncovered nearly 40 kilogrammes of cannabis stashed inside her luggage.
Last month a down-and-out drug mule took a gamble to clear his debt to his own mother and lost big-time at Manchester Airport.
Dean Pharoah, who owed cash to his mum, tried to smuggle over £200,000 (approximately 8 million baht) worth of cannabis into the UK after a holiday in Thailand. But UK Border Force officers had their suspicions and swooped as he passed through the Nothing to Declare channel, putting an end to his high-stakes plan.
Meanwhile, a British dad of three has been sentenced to two years behind bars for an audacious attempt to smuggle nearly £100,000 (4.4 million baht) worth of cannabis from Thailand.
The 42 year old British man, gripped by grief and desperation after the death of his girlfriend, confessed he took the illicit gamble in hopes of using the cash to reunite with his estranged children.
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