Overview

• Ronald Lord was sentenced to six years at Croydon Crown Court on September 5 after pleading guilty to Class A drug smuggling on August 5.
• Border Force officers found the cocaine concealed in a void inside the scooter’s seat back panel during X-ray screening at Gatwick on February 7.
• National Crime Agency experts estimated the street value of the seized drugs at about £640,000.
• Lord denied knowledge of the drugs, but investigators found a screw from the seat panel in his pocket and established he lied about spending seven days in Barbados.
• The Montreal resident said he was visiting the UK to sightsee, a profile the NCA says organised crime groups exploit by recruiting perceived low‑risk couriers.