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Three men jailed in UK for trying to import cannabis from Canada

October 11, 2024 | Morton Robertson

Three men who were part of a plan to bring millions of pounds worth of cannabis from Canada in Britain, hidden in mattresses, have been jailed for a total of nearly 20 years.

The cannabis arrived in Liverpool from Canada in January 2024. Eight bed frames were found to contain 668 sealed packages of cannabis weighing a total of 334kg, according to the UK’s Crown Prosecution Services.

The three men, Weiji Chen, 29, and John Kinsella, both of Liverpool, had previously pleaded guilty to the offences of importing and supplying cannabis between September 2023 and 16 January 2024. Luke Kinsella, John’s younger brother, 23, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cannabis.

Authorities say Chen was responsible for arranging for the cannabis to be imported into the UK from Canada. John Kinsella was one of Chen’s regular customers who wanted some of the imported cannabis to supply it to others. Luke Kinsella was also involved with unloading the imported cannabis.

Chen and John Kinsella first began smaller test runs of importing cannabis from Canada into the UK using the postal service, the court heard.

The conspiracy started in September 2023 when a number of ‘test runs’ were undertaken, arranged by Chen and John Kinsella, prior to the larger January importation. These importations were of a much smaller scale and were sent direct from Canada into the UK using the postal service.

Senior Crown Prosecutor Olivia Cristinacce-Travis, from the complex casework unit of CPS Mersey-Cheshire, said: “Over a few months, Weiji Chen and John Kinsella were involved in the importation of cannabis into Liverpool docks on an industrial scale, valued at over £2 million.

“The two men and Luke Kinsella had planned on supplying high-strain cannabis across the North West region. Due to the sophisticated nature of the importation, this was a complex prosecution in which the CPS successfully worked with Cheshire Constabulary to build a strong case against each of the men, who all entered guilty pleas and have now been jailed for a total of 17 and a half years.”