Man jailed for smuggling 61 firearms into the UK
A Polish man has been sentenced to nine years behind bars for smuggling 61 firearms into the UK.
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Eryk Mariusz Kiler, 44, was stopped by Border Force officers while attempting to enter the country at the Port of Dover on May 15.
When questioned about his travels, Kiler claimed he was coming to the UK for a christening.
Inside his Renault Scenic, Border Force search officers discovered the huge haul of self-loading pistols hidden in the voids of the flooring.
The discovery started a National Crime Agency investigation.
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Kiler admitted smuggling firearms at Canterbury Crown Court and was jailed for nine years on Monday afternoon. After trial, he would have been sentenced to 14 years.
Tracey Gasson, NCA operations manager, said: “The NCA and partners at home and abroad do everything possible to fight the threat of the criminal use of firearms.
“Working together, the NCA and Border Force have prevented a huge number of firearms entering the hands of organised criminals who would not have thought twice about how dangerous they were making our communities.”
Border Force Regional Director, David Smith said: "Our officers did an amazing job spotting this – they work hard to keep dangerous weapons off our streets. We're sticking with the NCA to go after serious criminals. Anyone who threatens our border security will face the full force of the law."
