A drug runner who was caught smuggling £100,000 worth of cannabis into Scotland has been jailed for three years. Robert Sulollaraj, 24, was being driven from Newcastle to Glasgow when police flagged down the car on the M74 after becoming concerned about erratic driving.
But when officers approached the Volkswagen Golf they were 'overwhelmed' by the smell of cannabis. A search revealed shopping bags containing 9.7kg of the class B drug which experts said would be worth £97,000 at street value.
Albanian national Sulollaraj was also found in possession of two mobile phones and a fake driving licence. An iPhone was analysed by officers who discovered a string of text messages, photos and videos linking him to the drugs trade.
Self-confessed cannabis user Sulollaraj, of Newcastle, denied any wrongdoing and went on trial at Hamilton Sheriff Court. He insisted he had travelled to Scotland with his 25-year-old cousin to buy a new car and had not noticed any smell in the vehicle.
But a jury convicted him of being concerned in the supply of cannabis between May 2020 and January 2021.
He was also found guilty of possessing the fake driving licence. Sheriff Alasdair MacFadyen jailed him for three years and also disqualified him from driving for two years.
Sulollaraj, who said he smoked up to four joints a day, insisted he had no idea there were drugs in the car.
He said: "When the car was searched I heard the police officer saying 'bingo'.
"I didn't believe it because I didn't know about the drugs.
"I had smoked cannabis but I didn't know there was cannabis in the car and didn't smell anything before the police told me it was there."
Depute fiscal Vish Kathuria had earlier told a jury: "Can you imagine the smell in that Volkswagen Golf, a small hatchback, as his cousin was cruising up the M74 with all 9.7kg of cannabis in the car?
"The smell is not the only thing that's overwhelming in this case, the evidence is as well.
"You have heard about the cousin's dodgy driving and seen the messages and images which show he was clearly concerned in the supply of cannabis."
Gerry McGuire, defending, said: "He got into that car with no knowledge or any role in the supply of drugs and is purely a victim of circumstance."
Sheriff MacFadyen said: "Given the gravity of the offence there is no alternative to a custodial sentence."
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