Pair Jailed After MDMA Postal Plot

Two men have been jailed for a combined 12.5 years for a plot to smuggle more than 1,000 MDMA tablets into Jersey by post.

33-year-old Graham Benson-Dias from York received a sentence of six and a half years.

Callum Hunt, who is 28 and from Luton, was jailed for six years.

A package containing the drugs was seized by Customs officers in October 2018.

The tablets were removed and the package was returned to the postal system so a covert operation could begin.

The operation showed Benson-Dias, who was employed by Jersey Post, deliver the package to Hunt - even though it wasn't addressed to him.

The pair were subsequently arrested.

22 bars of cannabis resin were then found in Hunt's home, with 28 grams of MDMA discovered in Benson-Dias'.

They were bailed and left the island - with arrest warrants issued to bring them back and place them in custody.

Both were arrested in separate areas of the UK.

"This sentencing concludes a lengthy investigation, during which JCIS have worked closely with law enforcement colleagues overseas to ensure that both were returned to the island to face charges. 

The importation of commercial quantities of controlled drugs through the postal system remains a focus for us, and we continue to work closely with Jersey Post to combat this." - Rhiannon Small, Jersey Customs and Immigration Service Senior Manager.

Jersey Post says while it cannot comment on individual cases or prosecutions, it works closely with Customs and the Police to identify illegal or criminal activity and make Jersey a safer place.