A Birmingham man who attempted to import heroin worth almost £87,000 has been jailed for seven and a half years.

Shafaq Hussain, 32, of Island Road in Handsworth was arrested by Border Force investigators in September 2012 after he arrived at a postal sorting office in Erdington to collect his parcel.

The parcel, which contained several cloth wraps, had been posted from Pakistan.

Drug smuggling

Border Force officers discovered the wraps had packages of brown powder stitched into them. The powder tested positive for heroin.

Forensic checks later showed that the heroin, which weighed 383 grammes, was 50 per cent pure and would have had a UK street value of £86,850.

Upon his arrest Hussain was also found to be carrying a metal bar which he had concealed on his person.

Charged

He was later charged with attempting to import a class A drug and possessing an offensive weapon.

Hussain pleaded guilty, and on Wednesday 29 May a judge at Birmingham Crown Court sentenced him to seven and a half years in jail.

Senior investigating officer, Dawn Cartwright, said:

Drug trafficking is a serious offence and those convicted will face a long prison sentence.

The message to anyone tempted to get involved is clear – we will catch you and you will pay with your liberty.

Border Force officers are on constant alert to prevent dangerous drugs like heroin making it to our streets.

Anyone with information about activity they suspect may be linked to drug smuggling should call our hotline on 0800 59 5000.