An 11-member drug-smuggling group has been convicted after trying to move 460 kilograms of cannabis worth £13.8 million into the UK in 22 suitcases routed from Thailand via Paris Charles de Gaulle to Birmingham Airport. The operation used excess-baggage fees paid in Bangkok before the bags travelled on commercial flights, with arrests made at Birmingham Airport in August 2024.
The final three defendants were convicted on 19 August, completing the guilt phase after six others had already pleaded guilty. The case was heard at Birmingham Crown Court and involved the National Crime Agency and Border Force. Investigators found the suitcases unusually heavy, with vacuum-packed cannabis concealed beneath a thin layer of clothing. Eight of the bags carried Apple AirTags linked to the same Apple ID, a detail that pointed to coordinated handling across the route.
Each courier reportedly carried two suitcases weighing about 20 kilograms apiece, and the group paid overweight baggage charges in Bangkok because of the load. Sentencing remains pending for several defendants, with hearings expected in early September and October.