Taxi Driver Online

Taxi driver caught on A1M with cocaine worth up to £689,000 is jailed at Leeds Crown Court

A taxi driver caught on the A1M with almost 7kg of cocaine worth hundreds of thousands of pounds in his car has been jailed for six-and-and-half-years at Leeds Crown Court.

Police stopped self-employed private hire driver Raj Seechurn's Mercedes car between junction 48 and 49 on the A1M on May 14, the court heard.

Bashir Ahmed, prosecuting, said Seechurn, 39, told police he was not on duty as a private hire driver but was on his way to Newcastle to collect some tyres.

Police searched the car and found seven blocks of cocaine - each weighing around a kilo - in a panel compartment in the car's boot.

Mr Bashir said the cocaine was up to 92 per cent pure and had a total street value between £175,000 and £689,000.

Two mobile phones were found in the car, including an expensive military grade 'burner' phone of the type used by criminals in a bid to avoid detection.

The court heard Seechurn, who has no previous convictions, got involved in the drugs trade after his income from his taxi business dried up during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Seechurn, of Wellesbourne Crescent, Buckinghamshire, admitted possessing cocaine with intent to supply.

David Burgess, mitigating, said Seechurn is married with a child and is well respected in his community.

Mr Burgess said: "He was under considerable financial pressure following the Covid-19 lockdown.

" It removed his means of livelihood, being a taxi driver, because nobody was moving around, and put him under very great financial pressure.

"It wasn't so much him looking for extra income as looking for some means of supporting his family as best he could.

"There is an element of exploitation. He was well aware of what he was doing, but he was exploited to the extent that his financially precarious position was known to people who wanted to use him, and so they did.

"He is entirely remorseful - he took a chance and he will pay a heavy price."

Jailing Seechurn for six-and-a-half-years, Judge Rodney Jameson QC told him: "I accept your livelihood is likely to have suffered as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic that has engulfed us all.

"The vast majority of people have managed to deal with it in different ways and not by turning to serious offending."

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IDFIMH

Funny how most cabbie/pirate hire have managed without turning to crime !

well he can now reflect on his stupidity whilst getting b*gg*r^d in the showers

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector