Andrew Dickson travelled from Alicante to Liverpool John Lennon Airport with his suitcase packed full of Champions League, Tesla and F1 branded blocks of cocaine
04:00, 14 Apr 2026
Andrew Dickson, of Pleasant Street in Blackpool, aged 39(Image: Merseyside Police)
A grandad-to-be claimed he merely had gifts from his holiday in his luggage when he was caught smuggling nearly £2million of cocaine on an easyJet flight from Spain. Andrew Dickson travelled from Alicante to Liverpool John Lennon Airport with a suitcase packed full of drugs, making it as far as the baggage carousel before he was stopped in his tracks.
Police then discovered a total of 22 blocks of cocaine, complete with Champions League, Tesla and F1 branding, inside his bag. The dad-of-three was said to have been used as drugs mule after racking up a debt as a result of his own long-term habit.
Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday afternoon, Monday, that Dickson, of Pleasant Street in Blackpool, arrived into John Lennon Airport at around 1pm on January 25 this year on an easyJet flight from Alicante before collecting a large Samsonite suitcase, tagged as overweight luggage, from baggage reclaim. Officers then approached the 39-year-old, who stated he had been abroad for three days and said the bag contained presents, although he was “unsure what they were”.
Jonathan Keane, prosecuting, described how Dickson also maintained the item of luggage “belonged to his friend” and did not have the code for a padlock on the suitcase. This was forced open and found to contain 22 blocks of cocaine weighing 25.55kg, some being packaged in Champions League branding and embossed with Tesla and Formula 1 logos.
Traces of the class A drug were also detected on Dickson’s passport. Upon the discovery of the contraband, he said he “didn’t know what they were” and added his “prints wouldn’t be on it” as he had “never touched it”.
The haul of cocaine, which was later found to have a purity of around 80%, was said to have a wholesale value of around £432,000, being worth an estimated £1.9million at street level. Thompson went on to claim in a basis of plea that he had trafficked the drugs in order to clear a debt which he owed as a result of his “long standing addiction”, although he refused to name to name those issuing the orders “for fear of his personal safety”.
His criminal record shows eight previous convictions for 14 offences, but none for drug matters and no appearances since 2017. Philip Tully, defending, told the court: “The drugs were not his. He was not involved in the packaging of the drugs. He had no knowledge of the type and quantity. His role is the classic, simple courier. He is not involved with anything else apart from being a courier from A to B of those drugs.
“I hope your honour will accept, through me, his genuine remorse for his actions. He is in a long term relationship. He has three children, a daughter who is 18 and two sons, aged 11 and 10. He has a grandchild on the way.
“There is a completely different side to him. He has been a decorator for some 16 years. He has suffered with anxiety and depression. His offending is set to the background of a long standing addiction to cocaine and alcohol. He is finding the time in custody extremely difficult. To his credit, he has tried to use that time constructively.
“I am told that he is a full time cleaner in the prison and is trying to improve with respect to education. He is doing his best to put his time in custody to good use. He accepts that what he did was wrong. He accepts that he deserves to be punished. I ask that your honour takes into account all matters advanced on his behalf and keeps any sentence to a minimum.”
Dickson admitted being concerned in the evasion of a prohibition on the importation of cocaine during an earlier hearing. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a white Stone Island t-shirt, he was jailed for six years and eight months.
Sentencing, Recorder Andrew Vinson said: “It is said you are remorseful and that this offending is not representative of the very different person which I am told you are today. You have worked as a decorator for a long period of time. You have grandchildren, over who you dote. But this is case where a significant custodial sentence is inevitable.”
