Lovesick deported man came back to Devon with drugs

Nick Irving & Paul Greaves

29 November 2024 at 9:53 am·1-min read

A deported Albanian man who illegally re-entered the UK was caught by police driving cocaine in a county line operation. Briken Coti accrued a £12,000 debt to human traffickers to get back to Britain because he was in a relationship but despite working, he was in 'financial desperation' and turned to crime, said his lawyer.

Coti, 23, admitted transporting cocaine with a street value of £22,500 to Barnstaple, Devon, from the Luton area last month when police stopped his car on the A361.

He pleaded guilty to possessing drugs with intent to supply and an Immigration offence and was jailed for a total of three years at Exeter Crown Court.

His barrister Emma Stuart-Smith said: "He was deported but returned because he was in a relationship but that has broken down. He has no intention to return to this country."

She said his £12,000 debt accrued from being transported to the UK and he tried to pay it back by working in construction but it led him to the drugs offence which he 'bitterly regrets'.

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