Trafficked driver who ditched car with 50 kilos of cannabis inside and tried to lose Shropshire police in maize field after 80mph chase avoids jail
An Albanian man who was caught with almost £500,000 worth of cannabis in a car in Shropshire after being coerced by people smugglers has been spared jail.
Gerhard Hoxhllaku, of no fixed address, came to the UK six years ago after being smuggled into the country by human traffickers, Shrewsbury Crown Court heard on Monday (December 22).
The court was told the 36-year-old had given people smugglers £10,000 to get into the country but still owed the gang around £20,000, which was why he got involved in the cannabis operation.
Ms Alexa Carrier, prosecuting, told the court that on July 23 this year, Hoxhllaku was spotted in a car on the M54 by police officers acting on information that the BYD Seal saloon was involved in the drug trade.
She said officers followed the car off the motorway at Junction 3 where Hoxhllaku pulled into a petrol station forecourt on the A41 in Tong, heading north.
