Two friends who appeared to have gone on a whirlwind girls’ trip to New York City were hiding a very big secret.
They landed back in the UK with two suitcases packed to the brim with what they said was from a shopping trip – but instead, officials found more than 35kg of cannabis in their luggage.
Today, Sophie Bannister and Levi-April Whalley, both 30, sat side by side in the court dock, holding hands and sobbing.
In December 2023, Bannister and Whalley – both originally from Blackburn – told Border Force officials they had been on a three-day shopping trip to the Big Apple.
However, text messages between them later revealed they had become involved in a plot to import cannabis and make ‘a lot’ of money from it.
They returned on December 9, flying through Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport, but were stopped on their arrival into Birmingham.
Both women said they had packed their own cases and knew it was illegal to bring drugs into the country.
Upon inspection, officers found 34 heat-sealed packages containing 16.5kg of cannabis in Bannister’s case and a further 39 packages containing 19kg of cannabis in Whalley’s case.
The drugs in Bannister’s case had an estimated street value of £40,500 and Whalley’s were estimated at £121,500.
Whalley, a nurse who has since been suspended from practice, told officials she believed the packages contained watches.
Later, both women pleaded guilty to fraudulent evasion of a prohibition and appeared at Preston Crown Court to be sentenced.
The court heard both women were vulnerable to exploitation due to their own personal and financial circumstances.
Since their arrest, neither has committed any other offences and Whalley has become a mother to a young baby, the court heard. She also expects to be struck off the nursing register, the court heard.
Judge Richard Archer, sentencing, said: ‘You were both aware that having travelled from New York to Birmingham via Paris you had in your respective suitcases a significant quantity of heat-sealed bags, containing 35.5kg of cannabis.
‘This was not your cannabis but cannabis you were carrying on behalf of another but you were expecting significant financial advantage for doing what you did.
‘You perhaps had little regard for the seriousness or consequences of your offending. It must have been in the back of your mind that you would be caught but you probably thought very little about sitting in the dock this afternoon. I very much hope that you don’t involve yourselves in this behaviour again.’
He sentenced Bannister, now living in Cotton Lane, Manchester, to 20 months suspended for 18 months with 30 days rehabilitation activities and 200 hours of unpaid work.
Whalley, of Livesey Branch Road, Blackburn, was handed a 16-month sentence suspended for 18 months, with 10 days rehabilitation and 80 hours of unpaid work.
Taking to social media after walking free from the dock, Bannister said: ‘Thank you for the people who have stood by us [during] truly the most mentally and emotionally challenging times of our life. 15 months of torture. HUGE lessons learnt. A LOT of tears along the way. But stood by each other’s side no matter what.
‘A true friendship which will never be broken which was proven today holding hands not knowing the outcome. Finally some closure and moving forward with our life.
‘Ready for the biggest fresh start and realising how important freedom really is. Levi Whalley no matter what people have said we really have an unbreakable friendship.’
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