FOUR men and a woman have been sentenced for smuggling almost 800,000 illegal cigarettes into the UK from Kuwait.

The tobacco smuggling gang from Sunderland were caught with suitcases non-UK duty paid cigarettes at Newcastle and Heathrow airports, an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) revealed.

Border Force officers seized 206,600 cigarettes from suitcases belonging to the gang between November 2017 and March 2018. It was found the gang had also illegally imported another 592,247 cigarettes.

They were sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court after admitting evading £237,403 in duty.

Ethan Hyden, 28, of Willow Road, Houghton-le-Spring, was given one year in prison, suspended for two years and 175 hours unpaid work.

Leon Halliman, 21, of Windermere Street, got one year in prison, suspended for two years and 250 hours unpaid work.

Callum Haggerton, 20, of Scruton Avenue, got nine months in prison, suspended for two years and 200 hours unpaid work.

Gabrielle Joyce, 22, of Gardiner Road, was given one year in prison, suspended for two years and 200 hours unpaid work, while Steven Parry, 50, of Oakfield Close, East Herrington, who was sentenced to three months in prison, suspended for a year, was given 100 hours unpaid work.

Cheryl Burr, Assistant Director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “This was a shameful attempt to put thousands of illegal cigarettes on the UK’s streets. They thought they could get away with this smuggling attempt and line their own pockets as a result but they were wrong.

“Trade in illicit tobacco deprives the UK of money which should be used to fund our vital public services and it undermines legitimate traders. The duty evaded on these goods was equivalent to the salaries of 11 new Northumbria Police officers for a year. Anyone with information about this type of fraud should report it to HMRC online, or contact our Fraud Hotline on 0800 788 887.”

Parry and Hyden flew into Newcastle International Airport in November 2017, but their six suitcases were delayed and arrived on a later flight. Border Force officers searched their cases when they arrived and found them filled with 81,600 illicit cigarettes.