By Josh Pennington,Patrick Edrich

Copyright manchestereveningnews

A drug trafficker who attempted to import £20m worth of cocaine and ketamine from Europe into England was apprehended in Ibiza’s Pacha nightclub. Eddie Burton, 23, sealed over 300kg of class A and B drugs in vacuum packs whilst hiding out in an Amsterdam flat before the stash was loaded onto lorries destined for the UK. On July 3 2022, Border Force officers intercepted the first lorry and discovered 90 kilos of ketamine and 50 kilos of cocaine stashed in boxes and a Lidl shopping bag. The second lorry was halted just six weeks later, on August 12. Inside, officers found 142 kilos of cocaine and 25 kilos of heroin hidden in a modified fuel tank. Burton faced Canterbury Crown Court alongside his former partner Sian Banks, 25, in February this year after confessing to a series of drug-related offences. Banks received a five-year prison sentence during the February hearing, but Burton’s sentencing was postponed by Judge Simon Taylor KC due to suspicions that he was a victim of modern slavery. Never miss a story with the MEN’s daily Catch Up newsletter – get it in your inbox by signing up here Today, Burton returned to the same court for a trial of issue. Judge Taylor then sentenced Burton to 19 years in prison, reports the Liverpool Echo . In February, when the case was opened, Paul Valder, the prosecutor, stated: “This case is about drug smuggling and drug supply. Those drugs being cocaine, heroin and ketamine. These defendants Eddie Burton and Sian Banks are, or were, partners. They are both from Liverpool. Eddie Burton is a convicted drug supplier and he has now pleaded guilty to being a drug smuggler. “Having been arrested and charged in the spring of 2021 for his part in a drug supply operation in Oswestry, Burton fled the country. He carried on playing his part in the drugs business whilst moving between Holland, Germany and Spain. He was involved on two occasions when very substantial consignments of drugs were smuggled into the UK by lorry via Dover. “They amounted to 192 kg of cocaine, 25kg of heroin and 90 kg of ketamine. The defendant Sian Banks was linked forensically to one of those importations, her DNA being on the packaging surrounding some of the drugs. It is evident from her phone and other sources that she was a regular traveller between Liverpool and Holland or Spain to be with Burton.” The court was informed that the woman’s phone records revealed she had twice smuggled cocaine and/or ketamine into the UK in her luggage for Burton, to be distributed to others, although the quantity of these consignments remains unknown. She also permitted her bank accounts to be used to financially support Burton while he was a fugitive in Europe. Additionally, she faced another charge for providing counterfeit Covid-19 passes to aid individuals travelling between the UK and mainland Europe. During his time in Europe, Burton was apprehended for “illicit trafficking in narcotics” on 29 March 2022 while heading to a music festival. He subsequently relocated to Spain, where Banks visited him several times. On 31 May of the same year, Burton informed his partner that he was travelling by car to Amsterdam to acquire a vacuum packing machine intended for drug packaging. Mr Valder expressed that “there is a clear inference he was going to be put into a flat and vacuum packing drugs for onward supply”. He further noted that messages indicated Banks was fully aware of Burton’s activities, especially when he mentioned vacuum packing “tops”, which is street lingo for cocaine. The apartment in question was later pinpointed to the north of Amsterdam, where the couple’s dog Marley was also staying. The court was told Banks made a visit to the flat between 17 and 20 June 2022, with Burton sending a message the next day stating he would be occupied with “135 bits”. Her response of “wowza” indicated to the court that she understood precisely what he meant. Banks returned to see her partner between 24 and 26 June, and several days afterwards the lorry carrying cocaine and ketamine set off on its journey. Text exchanges between Banks and her friend revealed his involvement in the drugs conspiracy was driven by his need to repay “Chog”. On 3 July, Border Force officials intercepted the lorry at Dover’s freight lanes border, discovering boxes and a bag containing 50kg of cocaine and 90kg of ketamine valued at more than £6.5m on the streets. DNA analysis revealed Burton’s genetic material on a package of white powder labelled “Jota K1”. Messages indicated the drugs were being transported for or by someone named Jota. Two days afterwards, Burton informed Banks the lorry had been seized, causing her to worry that her fingerprints might be found on the bags. Burton attempted to calm her fears, explaining that since she had never been arrested, her prints wouldn’t be in the system. Whilst he had his own concerns, he believed his fingerprints wouldn’t be traced as he had worn gloves. In the days following, messages revealed Banks pleading with her boyfriend for funds, lamenting that despite working all week, she was broke by the weekend, while “he earns enough in 10 minutes to last three months”. The court was informed that Banks made another trip to Amsterdam from August 5 to August 9, during which a second lorry departed Poland heading towards Dover. During this journey, Border Force officials discovered a modified fuel tank with a hatch concealing packages of 142kg of cocaine and 25kg of heroin, estimated to have a street value of around £12.7 million. Fingerprints and DNA tests linked Burton to the narcotics. Furthermore, Burton had Banks transport cocaine and ketamine through Liverpool John Lennon Airport hidden in her baggage. At one point, texts showed her worrying about the “cocaine smells so strong that the ketamine smells of it as well”. Concurrently, Burton feared his Amsterdam flat was under surveillance. He communicated his concerns to “Chog” and was advised to relocate everything to “Galloways”. Banks returned to Amsterdam between September 30 and October 6, with Burton bemoaning that although he had cleared £50,000 of debt, he now owed £16,000 due to accusations of not vacuum packing the drugs properly. Burton later relocated to Spain, lured by the promise of more work opportunities. However, his stint abroad took a turn when he was arrested at Ibiza’s Pacha nightclub for unrelated drug dealing offences, using the alias Ewan Banks. Following his arrest, Burton faced extradition to Germany on drug charges but was ultimately returned to the UK in March 2024 by specialist officers from the NCA’s joint international crime centre. Banks admitted to a total of seven charges on 3 February, including the importation of class A drugs and money laundering. During the proceedings, Judge Taylor remarked to her that upon entering a relationship with Burton, “for whatever reason you both immersed yourselves in serious cross-border criminality”. Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE Burton himself entered guilty pleas to four counts of importing class A and B drugs. His sentencing faced delays as he submitted a letter to the judge during his February court appearance, claiming he had been coerced into going abroad to settle a debt. The letter from Burton read: “There were things I could have done differently but threats against life were made towards my family.” Upon reviewing the letter, the judge noted “there are threats of modern slavery going through the letter…if the defendant maintains that, we need to think what we want to do with it. It’s not as simple as simply abandoning it”. The court acknowledged Burton’s role as “an important cog in a bigger wheel” and decided to postpone sentencing until a clearer picture of the facts emerged. Judge Taylor informed Burton in February that he was “not prepared to take the risk” and decided to adjourn sentencing. As Burton was escorted to the cells, he exclaimed that he had “lied in the letter” and declared: “It’s going to be the same outcome regardless”. Following the sentencing, NCA senior officer John Turner commented: “The drugs, had they reached their final destination, would have had a destructive impact on our communities, fuelling violence and exploiting vulnerable people throughout the supply chain.”