A struggling father from York narrowly avoided immediate prison time after trying to smuggle £100,000 worth (about 4.47 million baht) of cannabis from Thailand into the UK.
Jason Horne, 24, of Rycroft Avenue in Dringhouses, was caught at Birmingham Airport on November 14 last year after flying in from Bangkok. Border Force officers sliced open his two suitcases with bolt cutters and found 22 vacuum-packed bags of cannabis valued at around £100,000 on the streets.
At Birmingham Crown Court, prosecutors explained that Horne fell into financial crisis after losing his job due to an assault allegation, for which he faced no further action. Unable to support his partner and two children, Horne agreed to smuggle drugs despite having “serious misgivings,” claiming he feared the people for whom he was working and describing them as dangerous.
On his last day in Thailand, he was handed two suitcases and promised £7,000 for the job but never received the payment.
Recorder Fiona Clancy sentenced Horne to two years in prison, suspended for two years, acknowledging his remorse and the time he’d already spent in custody.
“You have learned a significant lesson being remanded for some time for this offence,” she told him, citing a “realistic prospect of rehabilitation.”
Horne must also complete 25 days of rehabilitation activities and perform 200 hours of unpaid work. Probation services assessed him as a low risk of reoffending, noting his interest in rebuilding his life through boxing.
