A DISABLED lorry driver who tried to smuggle £7.8 million worth of hard drugs into the UK told police he took on the job to repay a debt owed by his son.

Irish national John Mullen, 67, was behind the wheel of his lorry cab when he arrived at Harwich International Port from Rotterdam in February.

Border Force officers carried out an X-ray scan of the vehicle and discovered an “anomaly” in the trailer, thought to be a false floor.

Sasha Bailey, prosecuting at Chelmsford Crown Court, said: “The scan indicated the presence of a number of taped, wrapped packages.

“Mr Mullen was asked a series of questions about whether he had brought illegal substances into the country, or tobacco or arms, and he answered ‘no.’”

Officers seized 129 packages, containing Class A drugs including cocaine, MDMA and heroin.

The find comprised 73kg of cocaine, with a street value of £5.8 million, 51kg of MDMA with a street value of £2 million, and 2.5kg of heroin with a wholesale value of £45,000.

In police interview, Mullen said he had been threatened into carrying out the job as a means of repaying a debt owed by his son.

The court heard the debt related to Mullen’s 2017 conviction in an Irish court for the supply of cannabis.

Miss Bailey said: “He said he had been threatened, he didn’t know what he was transporting but he did assume it was drugs.

“He was aware of the concealment in the vehicle, he knew it wasn’t going to be firearms because the concealment area was too small.”

In addition to the drugs, €1,000 in cash, found wrapped in tinfoil in the lorry cab, was seized.

Mullen, of Clara, County Offaly, admitted three charges of importing Class A drugs.

Emma Nash, mitigating, said Mullen had not stood to make any financial gain from his crimes.

She added her client had made “full and frank” admissions from the outset of the investigation.

She also highlighted Mullen’s ill health while in custody, including a recent struggle with coronavirus, suspected prostate cancer and fused hips.

“He was due to have a hip replacement before his incarceration,” she said.

“This has been exacerbated by the prison context in that the floors are wet and slippery.

“He has to be extremely careful as he is walking on crutches, and sleeping on a bed with a thin mattress and no pillow.

“Prison isn’t meant to be easy and nor should it be, but for Mr Mullen, with his particular health difficulties, it is even more difficult than it would otherwise be.”

Sentencing Mullen to nine years imprisonment, Judge Christopher Morgan said he considered the haul of drugs to be “commercial, if not industrial” in quantity.

The investigation was led by the National Crime Agency.

Jaque Beer, branch commander said: “Through working with partners we were able to secure today’s conviction and stop a considerable amount of drugs from reaching the streets of the UK.

“Class A drugs are always linked to serious and organised crime, with their supply reliant on exploitation, violence and intimidation.

“Targeting those criminals who facilitate the drugs trade is a priority for the NCA and we will stop at nothing to disrupt them.”