Thursday 19 February 2015

Importation of 350 Grams of Hashish from Spain to the UK - What will the Sentence in court be?

So at the end of last year i was out in Spain where i had an apartment that was being sold. I had 250 grams of Soap Hash Bar of a very nice standard and I also had a bar of Pollen which weighed 100 grams. The Pollen was very high quality and a fantastic smoke. The reason I bought the bars of hashish was because they were so cheap. Each bar cost me 150 euro’s so it worked out less than £250 for the lot which was bloody awesome for the quality.

So I sold the apartment, loaded the van and thought i would pack the hash into a few boxes in the back. It was not a massive planned operation, nor was it a profitable one at that as the cost of driving back from Spain to the UK is a lot more than you would have thought. Including Toll Fees, Petrol and the Ferry cost it is somewhere in the region of around £600 for a one way trip. I drove from Alicante all the way down to Bilbao  (8 hours) and got the Ferry from there to Portsmouth. When I drove off the boat, immediately I began to shit myself and realize the error of my way..!

As I drove off the boat they were letting all the vehicles drive straight through with a simple wave of the passport so naturally it seemed I was in the clear.

Out of every driver that came off the boat I was the only one they pulled over at the docks. The cannabis was well wrapped in around 7 layers of bags and brown tape, washed each time it was wrapped so it certainly was not the smell that got me pulled over. I was holding out hope and with nerves of steel i braved it. I got out and began talking as though everything was sweet as it could be and I could not have been friendlier if i tried. They searched the vans contents with every single item laid out on a bench next to me and began opening all the empty boxes and bags. They searched everything and finally it seemed i was in the clear when the guy starts unwrapping my tv box that the hash was in. I lit up a cigarette walked to the side and realised that was my last smoke of the day.

After finding the sealed brown package they decided to spend the next 4 hours dismantling the entire van. With a team of about 20 customs agents they took the whole thing apart and I mean everything. Of course they were not going to find anything, why would I leave 350 grams of puff for them to clearly find if i was hiding multiple kilograms somewhere else? It simply did not make sense!

So I was arrested by Portsmouth customs and excise and questioned under caution etc and finally taken to Portsmouth station. Where I was charged and placed in a cell which i thought was going to be my bed for the night. To be fair the officers there were very nice and the finger print guy even gave me some Ginster pies while i was chatting to him. He said it was just a job to earn money t finish his home building project and he even made me a decent cup of coffee.

So after a few hours of interrogations and most of the night in the cells came my interview. I openly admitted the whole thing from start to finish and said it was clearly not for profit and bought as a personal stash and they seemed happy with that and let me out to appear in court in the coming months ahead. It was funny actually because they offered to give me a lift to the station as it was the early hours of the morning by this time. One of the main customs officers drove straight into the barrier and i said to her she needs to lay off smoking on that pollen they took off me ;-)

So the court date at Portsmouth Magistrates finally arrived and so I appeared as requested and hired a good local lawyer to handle my case. I wanted to make a good impression so I turned up suited and booted for the occasion. The idea was to get it dealt with at the magistrate’s court as the maximum sentence they could impose was shorter. I think it is just 6 months they can impose without it having to go to crown court. This was likely to be suspended or at worst put on tag so I thought surely it should be dealt with at this occasion. So I’m waiting there the whole day with loser after loser going past thinking how prison life would turn me into a criminal rather than reforming me when it was finally time for me to get called up. I walked in and immediately realized this judge was one of those that was bullied as a child and absolutely loved and worshiped the sound of his own voice. I gulped and thought this is certainly not a good start. The judge took one look at it circled the box 6-12 months recommended sentence and sent me straight to crown court.

Now my balls had finally dropped and I was a little in panic mode!

So I am to appear in Crown court charged with Importation of a Class B drug to the quantity of 350 grams.

My question to you now is what sentence do you think i will get for this in Crown Court?

It has recently come to my attention that my previous friend and now associate had been caught the day before I was caught on the Ferry coming back from Spain. He had 40 Kilograms of Pollen. This guy is a slippery snake of a f...ker that would sell his granny at the first opportunity so guess what it is im thinking now?

Surely someone with no criminal record coming in from Spain the way i did wouldn’t get pulled at customs but i did and it certainly seemed to me that they had me as a target right from the start. I heard some very strange things on the radio mentioning words like having the target in mention with us now and the next boat doesn’t have any targets etc. This dirty snake was the only person who knew i had the hash in Spain because he was the one who got it for me. And he was the only person who knew i was coming back in the van that day so I’m guessing he has put it all on me like i am the main conspirator.

What do we reckon guys? Am I screwed?

10 comments:

  1. I would realistically say that so long as you can get it on personal use and a lessor role as discribed in your sentencing guidelines published in the other post for importation of a class B Drug all will be fine. If I was you I would also be worried but to hazard a guess i would say 12 month suspended sentence and 200 hours community service sounds about right.

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  2. The only other concern I would have is of your mate. If you are directly connected to him that says you are not of a lessor role as you are connected to criminals. If that comes accross in court you could be in for a short vacation mate.

    I think anything over a few ounces and they treat it a little more seriously especially in crown court and 40kg as you said is serious stuff..

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  3. Bruv I was caught last year comin back from Spannabis in march. I had some tight amnesia cherry crazy cheap in spain paid 200 euro for over 50 g's. wrapped that shit tight and put it in da my main case. got on the plane fine but heathrow airport feds jacked me looking for cigarettes they found my weed and i was bang up.

    sent me to brentford magistrates court cost £200 and 100 hours community service.

    was only 52 g's

    dont tink dey call 350 g's persi blud

    I just got off on 52 g's so 350 got to be jail time.

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  4. All depends on how well you present yourself in court and what your history is all about. If they tie you to a criminal network such as your friend with the 40 kg you could be in trouble. They certainly will be watching you for a little while at least until you go to crown court. If they don't find anything and this is the only thing they can put on you I would say you will be okay.

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  5. 5 years ago my friend got 11 years for being the main conspirator to import coke from Canada. He bought in 3 kilo's to London Heathrow and he is only just getting into an open prison on day release now.

    I've been caught with little bits coming back from spain but anything under 100 grams and they will give you a slap on the wrist.

    You will be fine with 350 grams so don't sweet it, Chill and make sure you tell them you are a major addict and you will do all the rehab they offer... bla bla bla.. they love that stuff...

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  6. Hello people

    I’ve just noticed that I have yet to update the outcome of this case.

    My case was referred to Portsmouth Crown court and I was called in for my hearing around 2pm just after lunch time.

    So when you arrive your sent to the back of the court and sit in the dock behind the glass screen with a guard sitting next to you (waiting to take you away). I’m looking at the judge and he is looking at me like I’m a piece of S**T! The first thing he said to me was “what is that in your hand” to which I replied “my telephone” with disgust he demanded that I hand it to the guard. I did so and walked back to the position in which he was addressing me. Second thing he said to me “what is that in your mouth” to which I replied “chewing gum” with even more repulsion he said “how dare I disrespect the court by chewing gum, go and put that in the bin right now” OMG! I felt like a 13 year old boy getting a grilling by the head teacher. Now I was really in panic mode. So the court starts its proceedings and they start going through some details and the defence states to the court that I have a few minor previous convictions (non cannabis related). After this they go on to say how I am engaged in selling cannabis seeds online to which they are not even sure is legal. Right away the judge dropped his dummy and demanded an explanation. He made me come down to the front of the room and swear on the bible what I am saying is true and stated if this turns out to be false and I am engaging in illegal trade online with cannabis I will be in serious trouble. He then demanded that everyone leave the room so they can establish the true legality of what I am doing.
    At this point my brain was spinning as now they know I have a seed business and the judge took it really badly!

    After around 1 hour we were called back into the court and I was back in the dock ready for a new round of arse whipping!

    Luckily they confirmed that my business is completely legal but stated that it paints a very bad picture to the nature of my character (prick compared cannabis to prostitution) He then went on to decide what the starting point for sentencing was, he was suggesting 12 months custodial. When you hear words such as 12 months custodial, I don’t care who you are, ‘you begin to panic’

    On deliberation he asked me “why should I not put you in prison today”. He said “what would be achieved by letting me walk free today” He also asked why I refused drug rehabilitation and said that I have no respect for the law and will simply walk out of the court today and smoke more cannabis and carry on like nothing has happened. He was basically saying this is going to be a custodial sentence and what do I have to say for myself?

    So after gaining control of my wobbling legs, I made my final plea.

    I said that my life has changed quite considerably since the crime took place. I said that at the time I was smoking a very high quantity of cannabis and so the imported amount of 350 grams would not last a great deal of time. I am genuinely sorry but my life started out dedicated to a life with cannabis and it’s something I’ve always considered to be quite a natural and not illegal process. The reason for my refusal of the rehabilitation is that I have already rehabilitated myself. My new partner and soon to be wife does not like drugs and so now I have completely given up smoking cannabis and don’t need the rehab.

    Then I waited with overwhelming thoughts of what will happen to my life if i go to prison.

    After a few minutes he said that on the basis of what i've said the sentence is 18 months custodial, but he will suspend if for 2 years.

    No rehab, no community service, no big fine and nothing aside from £200 in court costs.

    'Huge sigh of relief'

    The thing is that right from the start I knew there would be no custodial sentence but the courts have a way of making you S**t your pants as to warn you off doing wrong again.

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    Replies
    1. My conclusion is really that the UK has a very relaxed stance on cannabis use. So long as it is not for commercial distribution and you play the game and suck up to them a little if caught. If you can convince them of any amount being used for personal they will never put you in prison. I actually think the law as it stands is not so terrible because it is basically legal. It is a big shame that it’s not fully legal here but I do think full legalisation may bring with it a few problems of its own. That said with legalisation there could be huge benefits such as medical treatment availability for people with issues and stigma attached to arrest would be gone. The huge waste in police and court time would no longer be there. After all this what really was the point in the entire investigation? Can you imagine how much it cost to investigate my case? Around 8 customs officers stripped the van for 4 hours, 2 police officers came to arrest me, then comes the investigation, court officials and secretarial staff. I think any guess as to cost we made here would be way off. It probably cost the UK Tax payer £20,000 plus (and for what) what was achieved in all of this? They took 350 grams of hash off the street, with a resale value less than £2000! Was there any achievement at all?

      More to the point though anyway.... thank f**k I got off very lightly and have heard nothing of them since.

      I think it was nearly 2 years since the court sentencing and I’ve never heard from them since so I guess they have now forgotten all about me.

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  7. The reason I bought the bars of hashish was because they were so cheap. feminized cannabis seeds

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  8. last year I was in spain and the price for pollen there is just crazy cheap. I bought some from a guy there who told me I could get 100 gram bars for 200 euros each. I was there for a month so I decided to get a bar just to have a good smoke while chilling out in the sunshine and ended up paying just 180 euros for it £150. In the UK 100 grams of pollen would cost at least double that so I thought great I’m onto a winner.

    When I got back to the UK there was a nice court letter waiting for me saying i owed money for major works on our apartment building and they were demanding £20,000 to cover the cost of the new roof and some other works that were carried out to the lift in our building and external grounds.

    After some time i decided I would risk it and sold my car for £5000 for which i managed to negotiate 50 bars at 100 euros each around £85. I knew in the UK they would be worth 3-4 times the price.

    So the total worked out at 5kg and I paid around £4250 for them plus I had the cost of toll roads, ferry ticket and diesel so I just about made it for the £5000 I got for my car.

    I figured if I can sell the bars for £350 each which is £100 per ounce I would have the money to pay off the debt after just one trip at least most the money anyway.

    so i decided to drive via the ferry from Santander to Plymouth and thought all was going perfectly.

    When I got off the Ferry everyone was driving through and they got me to pull in to the side. I guess its clear how the story ends now.

    I ended up getting caught with the 5kg and was sentenced 6 months later at Plymouth crown and county court.

    I got 15 months of which I served just 6 months of and am now out on tag.

    Let me tell you that unless you are very smart, this is not a good business to get into. There is a good change of winning but the chance to lose much more than what is invested is much higher.

    Now I’m struggling with re mortgaging as I haven’t the job and references for the bank and I am in even worse debt as I now owe money to my very good friend who helped me out while I was in prison.

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  9. any one help was caught with 28 plans no buds and have to attend the police station i was growing it for medical use for my mental health and epilepsy. what do you think?

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