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Drugs

The UK's Stupidest Weed Smuggler Just Got Sentenced to Nearly Four Years in Prison

Henry Alden, 20, tried to bring 26 pounds of cannabis into Scotland by simply shoving it all in his suitcase.
Alden's suitcase. Photo courtesy of the National Crime Agency.

Read: Why I Quit Smoking Weed

The UK's most shortsighted drug smuggler has been sentenced to nearly four years in prison. On May 19, Edinburgh border security officers apprehended 20-year-old Henry Alden after he disembarked a flight from Barcelona. The Portsmouth resident's carry-on luggage consisted of a plastic bag containing a phone charger and change of clothes, while his checked luggage held nothing but cannabis—26 pounds of it, with an estimated street value of £110,000 [$170,000] not concealed in any way whatsoever.

Alden was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison at Edinburgh High Court on Thursday, after pleading guilty to drug importation charges. Alden's drug smuggling efforts were described as a "brazen attempt" by NCA border investigation head, John McGowan.

He told the Evening Standard: "While Alden's method may not have been very sophisticated, he was a professional courier. We continue to work with Border Force and other law enforcement partners to tackle those who attempt to bring illegal substances into the UK, and to disrupt the organized crime groups behind such trafficking."

Similarly, Scotland's Head of Border Force, Murdo MacMillan, said the seizure demonstrates how officers are at the "forefront of the fight to keep illegal drugs and other banned substances out of the UK."

Moral of the story? Don't pack an entire suitcase full of weed, try to take it through an airport, and expect not to get caught.