Man caught wheeling suitcase stuffed with almost £80k of cannabis at train station before claiming it 'wasn't his'

A man was caught wheeling a suitcase stuffed with almost £80k worth of cannabis at a train station. Le Van Phuc, 29, was stopped after transport cops acted on suspicions, before he then claimed the luggage wasn't his.

On April 18, a court heard how officers from British Transport Police County Lines taskforce spotted Phuc leave a train at Preston station carrying a black rucksack and wheeling a large black suitcase.

His behaviour raised officer's suspicions and as he waited for a service to Glasgow, they approached him before he stepped away from the suitcase.

READ MORE Horror CCTV footage shows Bayesian yacht engulfed by storm before capsizing

When asked if the suitcase was his, he immediately replied that it wasn’t. However, when officers searched the case, they found two large bin bags inside containing cannabis with a street value of almost £80k.

A further search found £160 in cash along with a return ticket from Glasgow to Bolton.

The Vietnamese national, of no fixed abode, later pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply class B drugs and was sentenced at Preston Crown Court on Tuesday (August 13) to eleven weeks in jail.

After sentencing, Investigating officer PC Andrew Margerison said: “Our County Lines taskforce patrols the railway the length and breadth of the country, day in day out, and can spot when something or someone doesn’t look right.

“We have eyes everywhere so be warned – if you plan on using the rail network to transport drugs or indulge in any form of criminality we ‘ll be waiting for you.”