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Campaign urges drivers to inform on drug smugglers
Page 16
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A police campaign will try to persuade drivers to report those bringing illegal substances into the UK. David Harris reports.
THE POLICE are launching a campaign this week (18 October) urging truck drivers to inform on drivers who are smuggling drugs into the UK.
The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) wants professional drivers to pass on such information anonymously using the Crimestoppers telephone number.
The campaign, which is being backed by the Road Haulage Association (RHA), will be launched in Scotland and Northern Ireland this week and expanded to include the rest of the UK in the next few months.
Detective Chief Superintendent Tom Porter of the SCDEA points out that the vast majority of drugs coming into the country enter by road. He adds: -Organised criminals recruit drivers or corrupt road haulage firms who know what they are doing.
Phil Flanders, director of the RHA in Scotland,says the association agrees that there are drivers who act as smugglers but adds:"It's not just about shopping other drivers, it's also about putting people off in the first place."
Truck drivers already convicted of drug smuggling this year include Alan Philpot from Romford, Essex-he was jailed for 15 years in May for smuggling more than a million ecstasy tables and 45kg of amphetamines into the UK (Driver jailed for smuggling', CM 10May).
Flanders says that although there have been several documented cases of innocent drivers bringing in drugs because they ; did not know what was in their loads, others were well aware of what they were carrying.
The launch of the cam,/ paign was marked by the issue of a multilingual poster which will be put up at truck parks. ferry terminals, petrol stations and washrooms, as well as appearing in industry magazines and websites.