‘Nervous’ van passenger stopped near Southwaite carrying £500,000 of cocaine

At Carlisle Crown Court, the 28-year-old man, who was a passenger in the VW van, was sentenced after pleading guilty to possessing a Class A drug with intent to supply the day after his arrest.

Police became suspicious because both Alexander Ross and the van driver appeared unusually nervous when officers spoke to them, the court was told.

They said they gave the police different information about the reason for their trip.

The prosecutor said police stopped the van on the southbound lane between junctions 40 and 41 at 10.30am on August 2.

“Both men were extremely nervous,” the prosecutor said. “Police then searched the back of the van and found five separate, vacuum-packed packages of cocaine.”

The purity of the cocaine ranged from 56 to 78 percent, and each packet had an estimated street value of £100,000. The prosecutor said the amount of Class A drug involved suggested Ross was a “trusted” courier.

The defendant also had a message on his phone from his criminal contact telling him not to “tell the other boy” – presumably a reference to the driver of the van.

The police took no action against the driver. The prosecutor said Ross was remarkably honest after his arrest and admitted he was being paid £5,000 for his day’s work.

He pleaded guilty to the offense as soon as he appeared in the local court.

It also emerged, the court heard, that Ross’s crime bosses had entrusted him with a password to request from the person who would receive the drugs.

The prosecutor added: “He is 28 years old and has no relevant previous convictions other than for excessive alcohol consumption in 2014. It is in the interest of an organized crime group to engage someone who is not on the police radar.”

Jeff Smith, defending, took up this point and said employing someone like Ross would be an attractive prospect for people dealing drugs on this scale.

While £5,000 was a significant reward, Ross’s actions had wasted one of the best parts of his life.

“He was still young enough to do anything he wanted, but because of that belief he really ruined the rest of his life,” Mr. Smith noted. “The only dispute is how long he has to stay in prison.”

The court heard Ross’ partner was a teacher and mother of two. But he “fell into the wrong crowd” and took drugs.

Recorder Mark Ainsworth told Ross, whose address was Sunniside, Middlesbrough: “It is baffling how someone in your circumstances would become involved in such a serious criminal enterprise.

“You have no relevant criminal record; Her partner is a teacher and has two children. But somehow you found yourself getting in touch with the wrong people and getting involved in this venture.

“Perhaps you came into contact with them through years of cocaine use. You’ve been using a lot of cocaine lately.”

Recorder Ainsworth said the courts take Class A drug offenses so seriously because they destroy lives and relationships and cause chaos in people’s working lives. “They cause misery and that is why the courts take such a bleak view,” the Recorder added.

He jailed Ross for five years and four months.