Woman, 23, agreed to smuggle £50k cannabis through airport for free Thailand holiday

A woman accepted a deal to smuggle £50,000-worth of cannabis through Birmingham Airport in return for a complimentary trip to Thailand.

Jessica Taylor was given a locked suitcase and told to use the nothing to declare 'green lane' upon her return to the UK from Bangkok. However, she was intercepted by Border Force officials who broke open her case and found ten vacuum-sealed packages of cannabis concealed inside.

Taylor initially insisted her boyfriend had packed her luggage, but subsequently confessed she had agreed to transport the drugs through the airport herself.

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The 23 year old, from Knowles House Avenue, Eccleston, St. Helens, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to fraudulently evade the prohibition on the importation of cannabis, reports Birmingham Live.

She had been imprisoned for four months since her arrest but walked free from Birmingham Crown Court on Wednesday, August 27 after receiving a 14-month sentence, suspended for two years. Taylor touched down at Birmingham Airport on April 24 following her flight from the Thai capital via Copenhagen in Denmark.

John Brotherton, prosecuting, said: "She entered the green lane nothing to declare channel when she was stopped by Border Force. She had one suitcase and one rucksack. She presented her passport and was asked questions.

"She stated she had travelled from Palma and the suitcase and rucksack were hers. She had packed the bags herself. She was fully aware of the contents and wasn't carrying anything for anybody else.

"The officer asked her to open the suitcase but she said she didn't have the code. She tried to say her boyfriend had it and claimed he had packed it. The suitcase was forced open."

Alongside the cannabis, which tipped the scales at around 20 kilograms, officers uncovered an AirTag hidden inside a hairbrush. Following her arrest, Taylor initially remained silent during questioning but later confessed to the smuggling charges.

She put forward a basis of plea stating she had been drawn into the operation in exchange for a 'fully paid holiday to Thailand'. Taylor explained she had 'fallen on difficult times'.

The court was told of her previous convictions for drug-driving alongside possession of cocaine and cannabis.

Piarra Singh, defending, told the court she became entangled in the scheme after her addiction to Ketamine 'spiralled out of control'. He said: "She was at her lowest. She was promised a free holiday and to Miss Taylor it seemed like an opportunity too good to pass up, especially given the precarious state of her life at this point.

"There was clearly and element of exploitation in regard her recruitment stemming from her vulnerability, naivety and lack of maturity."

However, Mr Singh said Taylor had utilised her time behind bars productively by completing numerous courses and getting clean from drugs for the first time since she was 16 He added she was typically 'kind, respectful and gentle'. Taylor was slapped with a six-month curfew from 8pm to 6am and instructed to complete 30 days of rehabilitation activity.

Recorder George Kelly, during sentencing, stated her judgement was 'clouded by addiction to drugs at the time'. He concluded there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation but cautioned Taylor 'this is your last chance'.