Lorry driver jailed after trying to smuggle £2,000,000 of drugs in mattress
A lorry driver who tried to smuggle £2 million worth of drugs into the UK by hiding it in his mattress has been jailed for more than five years.
Alessio Giovannetti, 36, stashed the packages containing 70 kilos of ketamine and 20 kilos of mephedrone in spaces around the cab.
More drugs were discovered stashed inside his mattress where he slept in the vehicle, the National Crime Agency said.
Giovannetti’s truck was carrying lettuce from Europe through the Port of Dover in Kent when Border Force officers stopped him on 29 May.
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When questioned by investigators, Giovannetti said the packages smelt bad so he hid them in different places around his cab to stop the smell.
He also claimed he believed the packages were of horse medication that he did not think was illegal.
Giovannetti, from Italy, was charged with two counts of attempting to import class B drugs.
At Canterbury Crown Court on Thursday, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years and seven months in jail.
Forensic experts estimated the drugs had a street value of £2m.
Daren Nicholls, NCA senior investigating officer, said after the hearing: "Alessio Giovannetti went to great efforts to hide these drugs around his cab, claiming it was their bad smell that caused him to conceal his illegal haul.
"Drug runners like Giovannetti should not doubt that we are determined to catch them and bring them to justice.
"These drugs would have caused serious harm if they had reached the streets of the UK and we will continue to work with our Border Force partners to ensure criminal activity like Giovannetti's is disrupted."
