Man caught with £5m of Mexican cocaine who claimed he only brought back sombreros jailed for ten years

A drug smuggler who arrived at a Scottish airport from Mexico with a haul of cocaine worth more than £5m after claiming to have only brought back sombreros has been jailed for ten years.

Kristopher Purvis was caught ferrying packages containing the Class A drugs at Edinburgh Airport along with another man in July 2024, when he was stopped by a Border Force officer at the arrivals hall.

The 35-year-old and his companion each had a large black suitcase, and he was also carrying a plastic bag containing four multicoloured traditional Mexican sombreros.

The 15 packages recovered were each found to contain about three kilos of cocaine which had a purity of 52%.

Purvis, of Durham, was sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh on Wednesday after he pled guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine and being concerned in the fraudulent evasion of the ban on importing controlled drugs.

Moira Orr, who leads on Major Crime for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said: “This was a substantial attempt to bring significant quantities of illegal and harmful drugs through Scotland.

“Kristopher Purvis has now been held accountable thanks to an extensive Border Force operation, working with COPFS, to investigate a network of drug supply.

“With each case of this kind we can help reduce the harm that these drugs inflict on communities.

“We are targeting all people who threaten communities across Scotland, not only drug couriers but also those who direct their movements.”

Purvis admitted to two charges related to drug smuggling at the High Court of Edinburgh on March 4.

The 35-year-old, formerly of Murton, County Durham, was found to have flown from Mexico City airport to Edinburgh via a stop over at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport.

After being stopped by a Border Force officer as he went through the green “Nothing to Declare” channel at the arrivals hall, eight vacuum-sealed plastic packages were found within his suitcase.

Purvis told the officer the “only thing that he had acquired in Mexico was the sombreros”.

Another officer searched his travelling companion’s case and found a further seven packages containing the Class A drug.

When one of the packages was cut into it was found to contain a further sealed package covered in a foul smelling yellow liquid, which appeared to be mustard and inside it was cocaine.

The maximum street value of the total haul was up to £5,640,000.

Purvis was cautioned and replied: “It’s all mine, my mate had nothing to do with it. I put it in his case.”

He was arrested and responded: “Yeah, alright I understand. I’m useless and f***ing stupid and I’m f***ed anyway.”