Drug courier caught with £76k of cannabis has been jailed

Leon Tosku claimed he didn't know what was inside a holdall he said he'd agreed to deliver to Port Glasgow as part of a deal to pay off a debt he owed to fellow Albanian men.

But the 43-year-old later admitted he was fully aware of the contents of his illegal cargo — although he insisted he'd committed a one-off crime after 'falling on difficult times'.

Dad-of-two Tosku stashed 20 kilos of cannabis in the back of a black Audi A4 car and drove it from an address in Clydebank to the Port's Oronsay Avenue on September 10 last year.

Police had been monitoring him and two other men as part of an intelligence-led drug crime operation.

Prosecutor Mark Nicol told Greenock Sheriff Court: "The accused stated that he was paid £1,000 by an Albanian man to transfer a package from Clydebank.

"He stated that he was not aware of the contents of the bag."

The court heard that when cautioned and charged Tosku stated: "I have not supplied [cannabis] — I have made a mistake. I will not repeat again."

Tosku's lawyer, Billy Lavelle, said that his client worked in the construction industry, had numerous payslips to prove that and had travelled from his home in England to Scotland for work.

Mr Lavelle told the court: "That didn't materialise and Mr Tosku was left high and dry in Clydebank.

"Meanwhile, he has a young family to support down south, his savings ran out and he built up a debt to some people and was advised that one way to pay it back was to deliver these drugs.

"Mr Tosku advises that when he made this foolish decision he was pretty desperate."

Solicitor Mr Lavelle said: "He accepts that he had knowledge that there was cannabis in the bag.

"There is nothing in the background to indicate he is the type of man to get involved in this other than in the circumstances described to me.

"He deeply regrets his involvement and he was very emotional and remorseful."

The court heard that Tosku has two young children, aged one and seven, and a wife who has 'physical ailments' and suffers from depression.

Mr Lavelle said: "The family situation at present is pretty miserable.

"Mr Tosku has been working hard for his family and, of course, all of this now comes crashing down.

"He knows he will receive a custodial sentence and this will cause great distress for him and his family and I ask the court to take this into account, as well as the fact that he has no previous convictions.

"Mr Tosku has been living in the UK since 2008 and, other than this offence, he has not once come to the attention of the authorities.

"He is a hardworking man who fell on difficult times and he made this grave mistake."

Sheriff David Hall told Tosku: "The offence to which you pled guilty is a serious one.

"I have listened carefully to what has been said on your behalf by Mr Lavelle and considered carefully the criminal justice social work report.

"I take account of your age, family circumstances and lack of record.

"Having considered all factors I am satisfied that there is no alternative to a custodial sentence.

"The headline sentence appropriate is one of 18 months.

"Having heard submissions I'm prepared to reduce that to 12 months."

The sentence has been backdated to August 17 when Tosku, of Northampton, was first remanded in custody after pleading guilty on indictment to being concerned in the supply of cannabis.

His two co-accused, Altion Qosja, 45, of Enfield, Essex, and Erion Beqiraj, of Northampton, have pleaded not guilty to the same charge and are due appear in court again on the matter on November 30.