COURIER REPORTS DRUGS MISSING

A DRUGS courier from the Irish Republic has earned a place in the annals of
criminal incompetence by reporting his suitcase missing on a flight from
Dublin to Cardiff.

Christopher Dowling, 20, did not actually tell the authorities he had
cannabis worth UKP65,000 inside. It was found as soon as customs officers
opened the case to confirm its owner's identity.

Dowling complained to airport officials when his suitcase failed to emerge
at the baggage carousel in the arrivals lounge at Cardiff airport. Checks
revealed it had been flown to Teesside, where customs officers found it and
looked inside to check it belonged to Dowling. Among his possessions they
found 64 blocks of cannabis resin wrapped in a blanket. An officer told
Dowling they had found the missing suitcase and he was arrested when he
arrived to collect it.

The bungling drug runner, who previously earned his living installing
burglar alarms, was yesterday sentenced to two years in custody after
pleading guilty to smuggling at Cardiff Crown Court.

Jonathan Austin, for the prosecution, said: "After the flight from Dublin,
Dowling could not find his drug-laden suitcase anywhere. He reported it
missing and booked into a local bed-and-breakfast hotel to wait for it to
turn up.

"The case turned up on a baggage carousel at Teesside airport, where Customs
found the drugs wrapped up in a blanket. Customs contacted Dowling and told
him they had found his luggage."

Stephen Hopkins, for the defence, said that Dowling was acting as a courier
for a man he had met in a Dublin pub. He said: "Dowling accepted the offer
because he needed the money."

Dowling, from Newbridge, Co Kildare, was sent to a young offender
institution. Judge Martin Stephens said: "Anyone who imports cannabis on
this scale can only expect to be imprisoned."

Checked-by: Don Beck