Bosnian man sentenced to 13 years in UK for major drug smuggling attempt

A 23-year-old man from Široki Brijeg, Bosnia and Herzegovina, has been sentenced to 13 years and four months in prison by a UK court for his role in an organized crime group attempting to smuggle large quantities of drugs to Australia and New Zealand.

The group, based in Liverpool, utilized express parcel delivery services to transport narcotics. In October 2024, the individual and 47-year-old Lee Britles attempted to ship 252.8 kilograms of “pink cocaine”—a mixture of MDMA, ketamine, and caffeine—hidden under the guise of an industrial saw. The shipment was valued at approximately £11.3 million in the UK and roughly 57 million Australian dollars in Australia. The attempt was thwarted when a FedEx driver in Liverpool grew suspicious and alerted the authorities.

Following this incident, the National Crime Agency (NCA) investigated further, discovering eight additional attempts to send various drugs, including MDMA, methamphetamine, and ketamine, disguised as auto parts and whiskey decanters. The defendant had previously fled to Germany, where he was arrested in Duisburg before being extradited to the United Kingdom. Other members of the group, including Lee Britles, Karl Dalton, and Ashleigh Armstrong, also received significant prison sentences.