The Larnaca Permanent Criminal Court imposed a 13-year prison sentence on a 35-year-old man who last September imported over 24 kilograms of cannabis into Cyprus through Larnaca airport.
The defendant was found guilty, upon his own admission, of charges relating to possession and transportation of drugs for the purpose of supplying them to other individuals.
According to the facts of the case, the 35-year-old, of Arab origin and with a United Kingdom passport, traveled from Britain to Thailand, where he received luggage containing drugs.
He then arrived on September 10, on a flight from Bahrain to Larnaca Airport, where during the inspection of his luggage by the Customs Department, in collaboration with the Hellenic Customs and Excise Department, 44 nylon packages were found, which contained cannabis plant material weighing a total of 24 kilograms and 568 grams.
In his statement, the defendant stated that he agreed to transport the drugs in order to clear a debt he had incurred in the United Kingdom. He also refused to name who gave him the suitcase with the drugs, stating that he feared for the safety of his family.
As aggravating factors in determining the sentence, the court took into account the frequency with which serious drug cases now come before it and the need to impose deterrent sentences.
The 35-year-old's clean criminal record, the fact that he is the father of two children, and the fact that he was not the mastermind, but a member of the drug trafficking chain, were taken into account as mitigating factors.
