Drug-smuggling mum who carried 30kg of cannabis in her suitcase before claiming ‘it's only tobacco' is jailed
Former Asda manager, Louisa De Marco, was promised £10,000 if she could successfully transport the drugs through Manchester Airport.
The 53-year-old had her flights to Thailand paid for, to pick up the cannabis, Manchester Crown Court heard.
However, upon her return to the UK on May 8, Border Force officials discovered the secret stash spread across two suitcases.
De Marco originally tried to deny the luggage was hers and that she had packed them.
The drug smuggler even tried to convince cops they only contained tobacco.
Prosecuting, Chloe Fordham, told the court how De Marco's suitcases were in fact stuffed with 31.25 kilos of cannabis.
De Marco broke down under police interview and revealed she had met someone in Thailand who offered her money to transport the drugs.
She claimed criminals involved with the organisation paid for herself, and a friend, to fly out to Thailand.
They were also offered £10,000 - although the mum never received this cash.
Defending, Bradley Mather, told the court how De Marco was struggling with "financial difficulties" when she accepted the dodgy deal.
She earnt around £40,000 as an Asda manager, but lost her job after the pandemic.
Brit thugs forced 'drug mule' Bella May Culley to watch man be beheaded…and told her 'we'll do that to you', lawyer says
At the time she smuggled the cannabis, the 53-year-old had been declared unfit to work due to physical and mental health reasons.
Mr Mather also argued there had been a degree of "intimidation" from the criminal network who planned the operation.
De Marco claimed they had threatened to cancel her flights back to the UK if she backed out - which would have left the mum stranded.
Recorder Sarah Griffin, sentenced the former Asda manager to 20 months behind bars.
She added how De Marco entered into the deal with her "eyes wide open" and "knew exactly" what she was doing.
De Marco, of Broadway, Bradford, pleaded guilty to being concerned in the fraudulent evasion of a prohibition on the importation of a class B drug.
The sentence comes amid a spate of similar drug mule cases - with around 13 Brits currently kept in hellhole jails abroad.
Three Brits are facing the death penalty in Bali accused of trafficking more than £300,000 worth of cocaine onto the island.
A Brit couple were charged with smuggling £1million of cannabis from Thailand a mere few days ago.
While several young women have been arrested trying to smuggle cannabis from Thailand.
In the last couple of months, glam tourist Bella Culley allegedly tried to smuggle a suitcase of weed into Georgia and was locked away in a brutal ex-Soviet prison despite claiming to be pregnant.
And former air stewardess Charlotte May Lee was then caught allegedly trying to smuggle drugs worth £1.2million into Sri Lanka.
Young mum, Cameron Bradford, 21, from Knebworth, Herts, was detained at Munich Airport on April 21 as she tried to collect her luggage.
Separately, two drug-smuggling pals were caught with 35kg of cannabis at the airport after a "shopping trip" to New York.
And Isabella Daggett, 21, was arrested just five weeks after she relocated to Dubai from Yorkshire after landing a new job.
The Brit woman is rotting inside Dubai's hellhole prison on alleged drug charges fell in with "wrong people at the wrong time", her family has said.
Glamorous Sophie Bannister and Levi-April Whalley landed back on UK soil with their suitcases seemingly packed full of shopping.
The pair, both 30, were stopped at Birmingham International Airport with more than 35kg of cannabis in their bags.
Bannister, now of Cotton Lane, Manchester, was sentenced to 20 months suspended for 18 months, with 30 days rehabilitation activities and 200 hours of unpaid work.
Whalley, of Livesey Branch Road, Blackburn, was handed a 16-month sentence suspended for 18 months, with 10 days rehabilitation and 80 hours of unpaid work.
Why Brit backpackers are prime targets, Thai cop reveal
By Patrick Harrington, Foreign News Reporter
Police Lieutenant Colonel Arun Musikim, Deputy Inspector of the Surat Thani province police force, said: 'Cases involving British nationals smuggling cannabis have been around for a while.
'There is a lot of cannabis grown on Thailand's islands in the south because the climate is suitable and it is legal. A lot of gangs are attracted to this.
'There are now various smuggling methods that we have seen. Some carry it themselves, some hire backpackers, and some send it via mail.
'This year, there have been many cases we have intercepted. Most involve British and Malaysian nationals.
'It's easy for British citizens to travel as they can enter Thailand and return to the UK without needing a visa.
'Most of the smugglers are people hired to carry the cannabis, similar to how tourists might smuggle tax-free goods.
'They're usually unemployed individuals from the UK. The gangs offer them flights, pocket money and hotel stays, just to come and travel and take a bag back home with them.
'These people often have poor social standing at home and are looking for ways to earn quick money. They find them through friends or on social media.
'Many will go to festivals or parties while they are here, just like they are having a normal trip abroad.
'They are told that it is easy and they will not be caught. Then the amount the organisers can sell the cannabis for in the UK is much higher than it costs in Thailand.
'Police suspect that there are multiple employers and groups receiving the drugs on the other end. The cannabis then enters the UK market.
'We are being vigilant to ensure there are no routes out of the country.'
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