A ST HELENS man has been jailed – for attempting to smuggle 243 kilos of cocaine hidden on a passenger coach into the UK.

Christopher Bullows, of Lord Street, St Helens, was arrested after the National Crime Agency (NCA) stopped their empty passenger coach at Dover Docks in September 2020.

His passenger, Mark Tucker, was also held.

A search by the Border Force uncovered the cocaine hidden in a specially constructed wastewater tank.

The drugs would have been worth around £19.4 million if sold on the streets of the UK.

Bullows, 50, told NCA investigators that he had taken the coach to Belgium so that the air conditioning system, which was under warranty there, could be repaired.

He said that Tucker was a friend and mechanic, who had come along “for the jolly”.

St Helens Star: Christopher Bullows

Further enquiries showed that the air conditioning system had been repaired in the UK months before the trip.

Bullows and Tucker were subsequently charged with attempting to import class A drugs.

The pair initially denied the charge, but Bullows later changed his plea to guilty at Canterbury Crown Court on 22 April.

Tucker was convicted by a jury on May 11 at the same court, following a five-day trial.

During a hearing today, Tucker was jailed for 16 years, and Bullows for 14 years and 4 months.

St Helens Star: The drugs would have been worth around £19.4 million if sold on the streets of the UK

NCA Branch Commander Mark McCormack said: “This was a brazen attempt to smuggle a large amount of cocaine into the UK but it hasn’t ended well for Tucker and Bullows.

“Not only was their lethal cargo seized, they are now facing long spells in jail.

“Drugs smuggling is behind violence and exploitation in our communities, with vulnerable people often paying the highest price.

“We will continue to work with partners like Border Force to break the supple chains behind this despicable trade and dismantle the organised crime groups involved.”

Dave Smith, director of Border Force South East, said: “This is a significant sentence that sends a strong message that we will use every effort of UK law enforcement to disrupt criminal networks and stop drugs entering the UK.”

“Working closely with NCA our investigations and intelligence worked to protect the UK borders from drug trafficking and bring those responsible to justice.”