Myrtle McCreath is sentenced to seven years in prison after 7.8kg of class A drug found in suitcase at Glasgow airport

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

A woman has been jailed for seven years after trying to smuggle about £1m worth of cocaine hidden in toiletries into the UK.

Myrtle McCreath, 53, from Ayr, was arrested at Glasgow airport after arriving on a flight from São Paulo, Brazil, via Amsterdam.

During a search of her baggage, Border Force officers found about 50 containers of face cream, talcum powder and other toiletries, containing a total of 7.8kg of the class A drug.

McCreath denied knowledge of the drugs, telling National Crime Agency (NCA) investigators that she had been in Brazil for a holiday.

But messages on her mobile phone showed McCreath, who was arrested in February 2014, had been given a suitcase to carry back to the UK and was due to take a train to Manchester where she would hand it over.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest McCreath’s suitcase and the drugs found in it. Photograph: NCA/PA

Officers also discovered that she had been paid €1,000 (£705) days before travelling, and had been paid a similar sum for a return trip to Australia via China a few months earlier.

She was found guilty of importing class A drugs following a trial at the high court in Glasgow in October.

John McGowan, from the Scottish NCA border investigation team, said: “This was a substantial seizure of high-purity drugs with a potential street value of almost £1m. Had it not been seized, I’ve no doubt it would have ended up being sold on the streets of the UK.

“Using individuals like Myrtle McCreath is a common tactic for the organised crime networks involved in this illegal trade, which is why we are working with law enforcement partners such as Border Force to do all we can to disrupt and bring them to justice.”

Murdo MacMillan, head of Border Force Scotland, said: “This case should serve as a warning to anyone tempted to try to smuggle drugs. Our officers will catch you and you will face prison.

“In making this seizure, Border Force officers at Glasgow have taken a significant quantity of cocaine out of circulation and prevented it from reaching the streets.”