A 44-year-old who attempted to smuggle heroin into Jersey by concealing it internally has been jailed for four-and-a-half years.
Jermaine Jonathan Bailey, from Birmingham, was sentenced in the Royal Court after admitting the importation of heroin with an estimated street value of £9,000, as well as failing to disclose his mobile phone code to authorities.
The court heard that Bailey arrived in the island on 11 December 2025 on a flight from Birmingham.
He was stopped by officers from Jersey Customs and Immigration Service after a drug detection dog indicated his baggage.
When questioned, Bailey told officers that he lived in Jersey and had travelled to Birmingham for four nights to visit his sick grandmother.
He initially denied any involvement with drugs, despite swab tests on his belongings returning positive results for cocaine.
Further suspicion was raised when Bailey underwent a urine test, which proved positive for cocaine, morphine and benzodiazepines. Customs officers subsequently suspected that he was concealing drugs internally.
A CT scan later confirmed those suspicions, and Bailey produced a package containing 12.25 grams of heroin.
During the investigation, Bailey said he was a daily heroin user and claimed the drugs were for his own personal use.
He said he had purchased the substance in Birmingham for £400 as it was cheaper than obtaining it in Jersey, but later conceded that he would be selling a proportion of the drugs.
Jersey Customs and Immigration Service senior manager Paul Le Monnier said: “The importation of Class A drugs, such as heroin, presents a significant threat to the health and safety of the island community.
“Heroin brings untold misery to users, family members and wider society. This case reflects the continued vigilance of JCIS Officers at our borders and the effective use of our assets, including the drug detection dogs.”