Bradford Mother Jailed 13 Years for Using Children in £15m Cocaine Smuggling Ring

Farzana Kauser, a 54-year-old mother from Bradford, was sentenced to 13 years and four months in prison for leading an international cocaine smuggling operation that used her own children as couriers. She orchestrated the importation of 180 kilograms of high-purity cocaine, valued at approximately £14.4 million, from Cancun, Mexico, to the UK through Birmingham Airport, working alongside an unidentified accomplice known as 'Uncle' in Pakistan. The family gang manipulated flight schedules and exploited a corrupt insider in Mexico to smuggle the drugs in unaccompanied suitcases, which the children collected from the Cancun baggage carousel and carried through customs without luggage. This plot involved at least five importation trips between August and November 2024, with Kauser's four sons, one daughter, and daughter-in-law admitting to their roles in the conspiracy. The operation was uncovered when authorities arrested Kauser and other family members at Birmingham Airport in November 2024. The National Crime Agency condemned Kauser for endangering her children's futures and emphasized the broader dangers posed by Class A drugs to the UK.