Probe into £750k cannabis airport smuggling links

A large amount of the Class B drug was seized at Birmingham Airport

A series of £750,000 drug seizures at an airport were being probed to see if they were linked, investigators said.

Nine people were arrested at Birmingham Airport in the last two weeks, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said.

Five of the passengers had flown in on routes from Thailand while four started their journeys in the USA.

The suspects were each said to be carrying between 15 and 40 kilos of cannabis in suitcases, with police probing whether their actions were connected.

About 260 kilos were seized by border officials in total and were worth about £750,000, the NCA said.

The nine people, who were all arrested on suspicion of smuggling Class B drugs, were bailed pending further inquiries.

Officers were looking into whether the nine cases were connected

“Following this unusual amount of seizures in such a short space of time, law enforcement will undoubtedly be paying more attention to passengers coming into Birmingham on certain routes and stepping up checks," said NCA branch commander Mick Pope.