A drugs courier who tried to smuggle cocaine worth £5.6 million into the UK hidden in two large suitcases containing sombreros has been jailed.
Kristopher Purvis, 35, ferried 15 packages from Mexico City to Edinburgh Airport along with another man in July 2024.
Border Force officials stopped and searched the cases as he made his way through the nothing-to-declare channel at the airport.
Purvis, of Durham, was sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh to 10 years on Wednesday.
He pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and being concerned in the fraudulent evasion of the ban on importing controlled drugs.
The two men arrived at Edinburgh after a brief layover at Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris following a flight from Mexico City, carrying the two suitcases and a plastic bag containing four sombreros, according to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS).
They were intercepted by Border Force officials, who uncovered the drugs during a search of the luggage.
Eight vacuum-sealed plastic packages were discovered inside Purvis’s suitcase.
After cutting into one, the officer found it contained a second sealed package covered in a foul-smelling yellow liquid, which appeared to be mustard.
The second package contained a white powder.
His travelling companion’s case was also searched, with a further seven packages containing the class A drug.
The 15 packages recovered were each found to contain about three kilos of cocaine which had an average purity of 52%.
The maximum street value of the total haul was £5,640,000.
Purvis was cautioned and replied: “It’s all mine, my mate had nothing to do with it. I put it in his case.”
Moira Orr, who leads on major crime at COPFS, said: “This was a substantial attempt to bring significant quantities of illegal and harmful drugs through Scotland.
“Kristopher Purvis has now been held accountable thanks to an extensive Border Force operation, working with COPFS, to investigate a network of drug supply. With each case of this kind we can help reduce the harm that these drugs inflict on communities.
“We are targeting all people who threaten communities across Scotland, not only drug couriers but also those who direct their movements.”
Donnie Lawrie, from the National Crime Agency, said: “Kristopher Purvis attempted to appear like an innocuous tourist and claimed to only be carrying sombrero souvenirs. The truth was the luggage he was carrying contained millions of pounds worth of drugs.
“Purvis was used as a mule for the criminals keen to increase their profits when selling drugs on the streets of the UK.
“The NCA continues to work closely with UK Border Force, police forces and other law enforcement partners throughout the world to reduce the supply of class A drugs intended for the UK market.”
Detective Chief Inspector Laura Sands, of Police Scotland, said: “This conviction and sentencing serves as yet another example of our ongoing commitment to target the supply and distribution of controlled drugs across Scotland, which remains an absolute priority for the Organised Crime Partnership and its partners.
“This intervention and subsequent detection disrupted an attempt to bring a significant volume of class A controlled drugs into the country.
“I would like to take this opportunity to remind the public that information from our local communities is an essential part of our investigations, as we work to disrupt the drugs trade and work with our partners to bring those responsible to justice.”
