All language subtitles for locked_up_abroad_s05e06_daredevil_drug_runner

I didn't even know what cannabis resin
was.

I've got five kilos strapped on my back.

Anything going wrong now means you're
inside.

This is kamikaze work.

I was addicted to it.

I was suddenly surrounded by armed
police.

I'm a martial artist.

Now it's life -saving time.

It's 1993.

My wife, Susan, and I moved to the most
beautiful farmhouse in Spain.

We were in Frangirola, which is a
seaside town.

on the Costa del Sol.

The Costa del Sol is a bit like the
Californian coast, but much, much

more purpose -built for the European
holidaymaker.

All the businesses were run by English
people.

Most of the pubs, most of the
restaurants were run by English people.

My wife and I, we wanted to set up a
martial arts business.

We were both black belts.

We're good at teaching and we're good at
business.

I got into martial arts when I was about
15 shortly after I left school.

Eventually, I got the sense of adventure
and I joined the British Army and

became a combat engineer.

But the martial arts thing stayed with
me.

I met Susan at the beginning of the 90s
in a martial arts centre.

I fell in love with this girl.

Unfortunately, she fell in love with me.

We wanted to start a new life doing what
we do best.

But it didn't quite work out.

We'd found a place that was suitable for
us to teach our martial arts.

We met the people who owned this place,
a chap called Steve and a chap called

Charlie.

We negotiated the rent, which was really
favourable for us. It was really cheap.

We were overjoyed.

It was perfect.

I signed the contract.

Here's the keys.

Thank you very much. We all shook hands.
Wonderful.

We considered ourselves to be extremely
lucky. There was no way that I could

have known what they were up to.

Six months after we'd started our
business, things changed.

Charlie came into the dojo and asked to
speak to me privately.

We sat down together.

He then kind of explained that he was
now going to more than double my rent

because he had problems with the bank.

I was really flabbergasted, shocked.

I was stuck for how to respond to this.

We'd actually spent everything that we
had on building the business.

My world has just collapsed.

I've got an awful thing to do now. I've
got to go and tell Sue.

It took me a

few days.

The instant reaction was a shock.

The atmosphere just suddenly becomes
terribly unhappy.

It's an awful thing to do, to take
somebody's happiness away.

Susie. How on earth are we going to
survive?

Susie! How can I possibly make this
extra money?

I knew then that I had to do something.

Then I was offered my way out.

Steve called and he said, come on, I'll
take you for a coffee.

Hola.

He said, I've got some people in England
who I send cannabis resin to.

People who smoke spliffs.

They're doctors, they're policemen,
dentists, you name it. They all do it.

I didn't even know what cannabis resin
was.

I spent my life in the army and martial
art. What the hell's a spliff? I don't

know why, you know.

I don't even know what the stuff is. I
don't even know what it looks like. I

don't know what it smells like. I don't
know what it does to you.

I can only... I said, what about you
taking it across to England?

I was shocked.

Come on.

Trust me.

I've never, ever broken a law.

I've just never done anything wrong.

He said, you know, you're ideal for the
job. Nobody would ever suspect you of

doing anything wrong.

They have no reason to.

It was against all of my principles.

Sit down.

But he said, you'll be extremely well
paid.

And it's a piece of cake.

Simple, really.

It's the only thing that's been offered.

So I'll do it.

To save the roof over our head.

For me, it was a decision that was
totally life -changing.

I was at my lowest point, and he caught
me at the right time.

He knew what he was doing, because what
had he got? He'd just got himself the

perfect mule.

When I went back home, I wanted to tell
Susan.

We didn't have secrets between us.

But this was a necessary secret.

I couldn't share this with her.

I didn't want to implicate her in any
way.

So to relieve her of some of the stress,
I told Susan that I was going to the UK

to do a martial arts seminar.

and there's a lot of money involved, so
don't worry about the rent.

Some weeks later, I went along to the
deserted warehouse, which belongs to

Steve, where the drugs were hidden.

Steve told me that we were going to have
a neoprene...

suit that will house five kilos of
hashish on my back.

And it's super.

My reaction was, well, it'll have to be
absolutely perfect.

I went along with it.

But I'm still frightened of the
consequences of it getting caught.

Steve lifted out this bag.

That's the stuff.

I'd never seen anything like it before.

They've got this cellophane wrapping on
them, and there's a kind of a film of

dust like talcum powder.

The smell was tremendous. It was really
overpowering.

That made me feel really nervous.

But the thief said, don't worry, the
drug will be treated.

It was dropped in a bucket of bleach.

so that nobody can smell it, dogs can't
smell it.

Out of the bleach it's dried, and then
it's taped, and taped again.

The neoprene suit had to be close
-fitting.

Here it is.

Try it on.

I'd jumped up and down, I'd tested it,
I'd walked and jogged around the place,

nothing was coming adrift.

I could look in the mirror and just see
that I didn't look any different.

It was a problem to dress and undress,
but

I felt, yeah, it's a piece of cake, as
long as I don't get frisked.

Steve drove me to Malaga Airport.

We parked the car. We walked from the
car.

In walking from the car, he checked me
over from behind. Yeah, everything's

perfect. Don't worry, everything's
great.

There's hundreds and hundreds of
holidaymakers all around the place.

Everybody came to shuffle through to
security.

In we went.

Steve going, because he's not part of
this anymore.

I've got a certain amount of anxiety,
because I'm doing something that I don't

want to do.

I'm mingling with the crowd to go
through the metal detector.

The result of anything going wrong now
means he is inside.

Your heart is pounding, but I act as
normal as possible.

If the Guardia Civil officers physically
grabbed me, they'd know instantly what

I had on my back.

I'm in a heightened state of adrenaline.

I walk past the Guardia Civil officers
without them suspecting anything.

There's a great relief, but there's
still a feeling of we're not out of the

yet.

Then I go to the gate area

to board the aircraft.

And I wait there.

I've still got the trepidation of having
this cargo on my back.

When two Guardia Civil officers came
walking towards me,

in their green uniforms

and their weapons on their hips, looking
at them, waddling towards me.

Here we go.

This handcuff's going to appear any
moment.

I was absolutely really breaking it now.

The adrenaline was screaming around.

They came right to me and then they
spoke

to this chap sitting next to me who was
one of them

in civilian clothes going to UK on his
holidays.

Now, I'm worried because here's me sat
with five kilos on my back.

next to a Guardia Civil officer
disguised as a civilian, who, if he had

me with his elbow, he would have had a
very hard feeling, because that was

the cannabis resin was, right there.

There is a feeling of, as he sees me,
does he know?

So I kind of moved this way a couple of
inches.

Right to the end, nearly falling off the
bench, getting away from him.

Eventually, they said their adioses and
off they went.

The relief that I experienced then was
immense.

The aircraft started to board.

Everybody got up. Everybody wants to be
first.

let him go for i don't want anybody
behind me maybe accidentally pushing or

feeling what i had on my back so i just
followed the end of the queue

three hours later i arrive

in manchester i cleared the aircraft now
i am desperate to

get to my destination and take off from
the drugs

It was only then that I realised I still
had to walk through customs.

I'm going down towards the customs
officers who are manning the desks.

I can see people to the left and to the
right having their bags rummaged.

I can see also some empty desks, so I
could be called.

My heart comes up into my mouth
thinking, you fool, you should have

more minutes and then they would have
been busy as well.

The first thing that I thought about was
trying to run, but this is just going

to make matters worse. I don't want to
be noticeable.

So I stay at the same pace as everybody
else.

I can't afford to be rushing.

It's killing me.

Just do it.

Eventually, I walked through to the
other side without anything happening,

which was a great relief.

I beat the system.

And off I went, into a taxi.

I get into the hotel.

Once I'm in the room, I get undressed,
take everything off,

undo the tapes.

I ring Steve.

11 red roses to him means I'm in room
11.

I had to wait.

The contact arrived.

Which in this case was his daughter.

My anxiety is now ceased.

I'd make enough money to pay Charlie
three months' rent.

I was buzzing.

It was a thrill.

The next day, I got a flight back to
Wengerola.

I arrived home.

It was frustrating because I couldn't
give her the good news about... having

this money and having this deal with
Steve.

Obviously, the cat had to come out of
the bag eventually.

But I wasn't ready for that yet.

It wasn't time.

About three weeks later, Steve asked me
if I wanted to do it again.

I've forgotten all about the trepidation
and the consequences of being caught.

This is the easiest money I've ever
made.

So I said yes.

I should have realised I didn't know
anything about the job.

I was green.

On my way through Manchester airport, I
was carrying six kilos on my back.

I was one of the first people through
because I didn't have any luggage.

It was a silly mistake.

Customs officer called me over.

Panic suddenly appears.

He starts to rummage my bag.

The customs officer, busybody of a man,
eagle -eyed and poker -faced.

He questioned me, where are you going?

It seemed as though he suspected me of
something.

Something must have triggered his
thought.

Maybe it was my appearance.

I told him that I'd arranged to test
-drive a motorbike at this shop in

Manchester. There's the business card.

He was looking at me.

He asked me to take my jacket off.

That's it.

The jacket is my cover.

It was game over.

I take the jacket off as best I can
without over -exerting.

Very difficult.

I thought he would see the solid mass of
cannabis resin on my back

I didn't know what he was going to do

He took my passport and went to

his office

He gave me the passport.

Sorry about that, sir.

Just doing my job.

It gave me an enormous rush.

This sense of great achievement for
having beat the system.

I knew I would do it again.

Stephen thought about using a motor car.

The plan would be to leave southern
Spain and go across France and then sail

across to England carrying 45 kilos of
hashish.

The idea was to cut the fuel tank in
two, weld a plate in there, put

back together again so we can have
petrol in this side and cannabis resin

this side and there the twin shall meet.

I had to think about this because 45
kilos is much more serious.

But this was a better way of beating the
system.

I would get paid something like $30 ,000
to $40 ,000.

Let's give it a go.

I drove across Spain into France.

The drive had been particularly good.
Super weather all the way.

It was about nine o 'clock in the
evening.

And as I approached this toll road,
seemingly from nowhere, there were

armed police.

I wasn't going anywhere.

There was a shot.

They got me out of the car and started
work

There's somebody with the bonnet up
checking

that There's somebody with the trunk
open checking in there

the dog team was working from the other
side of the car I Thought they were

being quite specific about what they
were doing These people meant business

This chap started to take various bits
of equipment out.

He was a mechanic.

Then he took the petrol cap off.

I see the chap put the probe into the
petrol tank.

I was internally freaking out.

I've got 45 kilos of hashish in the fuel
tank.

My heart was in my mouth.

I've got the feeling that something has
made them pick on me.

When he withdrew the probe, wiped it
clean,

I realised he didn't see anything

untowards.

The relief was immense.

I've escaped again.

When I got home, Susan and I were having
a meal.

The wine that I was drinking, it was an
expensive drop of wine that I was...

Treating myself too.

It must have raised her eyebrow.

And so she questioned me.

What are you up to?

What's going on?

There's something happening that I don't
know about.

So I just said, look, I've been taking
cannabis resin.

to England.

This is how I've got this money.

It was really a great shock to her that
I had actually been breaking the

law.

Even though it was to save RuPaul, but I
had... That seemed not to matter

once the truth was out.

She was obviously... She was against it.

because of that.

I thought, enough is enough.

With the money that I'd made, I no
longer had to rent the dojo from

Charlie and Steve knew exactly what they
were doing.

They coerced and put me into the trap,
and I fell for that.

So it was adios, Charlie, and adios,
Steve.

There was a feeling of good riddance.

But because of the thrill I was getting
out of smuggling, I

realised I was addicted to it.

This is so easy.

I was going to continue to do it.

Now... It was sheer ego In

less than a year I became a

fully fledged cannabis smuggler It

is an enormous trade It

is an industry far beyond what anybody
could think

I was running back and forth to Spain on
various aircraft through various

airports with kilos of cannabis resin on
my back, driving to northern England

umpteen times over the Pyrenees
Mountains across France.

I spent 12 years in the army, the drug
smuggling business.

It was just like another army adventure.

The martial arts business was taking
second place. Susan was actually

More than me.

She knew what I was doing, but that
aspect of life was my business.

We love each other more than anything.

But you do your job, love, and I'll do
mine.

I was becoming a freelance operator.

People who I meet along the way came to
know me and trust me because I visited

them many times to take their supply.

One of them, a Spanish gypsy by the name
of Lito, asked me if I could sail.

I said yes, because during my military
career, I learnt to sail. The salt craft

and things like this.

They needed somebody to go across to the
Moroccan coast, pick up the tons of

cannabis resin, and bring it back here.

It's only about a dozen miles away.

For me.

It was a major adventure.

I said yes.

We set off in darkness before midnight

because the police and the Guardia Civil
were always patrolling the bars at that

time.

The wind was in my face and the
adventure had started.

Lito knew exactly where to go.

This was unknown territory to me. This
was a new stretch of water. I'm going to

an unknown destination. I'm meeting
people who I believe to be armed and

dangerous. And I know that there's no
swimming back.

Eventually, I could see breakers landing
on the beach. The only noise was the

water hitting the beach.

As we landed out of the scrub...

Suddenly came all of these people with
guns and bales of hashes.

Butterflies were really screaming
around.

A tonne was put on board.

It was loaded in moments.

There was a tap put over it.

It was time to go.

We pushed back out to sea to get back to
the Spanish coast.

On the way back, I'm looking for lights,
moving lights, that could be patrol

boats.

I was thinking, here I am with the
tonneau on board.

If I'm going to get caught, this is
where I'm going to get caught.

Let's get ashore and get this stuff off.

I want to go home.

This is Kamikaze work.

As we approach the Spanish coast, the
adrenaline is so powerful,

it gives you tunnel vision.

When we hit the beast, I felt really,
really relieved.

They surrounded me with a wad of money.

I actually didn't care about that money.

I was thinking, I can't go through all
that again.

But... Propositions were still coming
thick and fast.

There was a day that one of my contacts
came to the Finca.

Paco was an estate agent. That was his
front.

In the meantime, he was a hashish
smuggler and dealer.

Paco had a problem. He

had this deal

of delivering 500 kilos of hashish to

Burgos in the north of Spain the
following day.

And the driver had disappeared.

The gang that he had got himself
involved with I threatened to kill him

family should he not deliver the goods.

That was his dilemma.

I had question marks. I was dubious.

But I decided to help him.

Had Susan known about what I was doing,
there would have been an almighty row

and probably I wouldn't have done it.

But again, I didn't tell Susan about
this because

I thought it would have brought too much
anxiety home.

It was a decision that for me was
totally life -changing.

When I started out the next day,

I was worried.

There was no preparation and planning
here.

And I can only hope and pray that they
have taken all of the precautions that I

would have done.

I arrived at the farmhouse where
everything was to be loaded.

Thank you. Thanks for coming.

Packle was a mixture of nervousness and
relief.

We loaded the bus with the bales of
hashish and

we manipulated the bales under the seats
where we could.

Where they couldn't go under the seats,
they had to stay in the aisle.

We got the 500 kilos in there and then
we covered it with travel rugs and a few

cartons of odds and ends, just cartons,
just to camouflage it.

It's impossible to effectively hide 500
kilos in such a small vehicle.

If I was stopped and checked, it was
game over.

Paco had another vehicle because he was
riding ahead of me, so that should he

run into trouble, he can immediately
telephone me.

And so off went Paco.

This was when I really thought to
myself, you fool.

I really should have taken note of my
own instincts. I should have left it

Paco. But I thought, OK, there's a
reason for everything.

The reason for doing this is to save
Paco and his family.

So off I went, ten minutes behind him.

There was nothing out of the ordinary
with the drive.

I was kind of looking in my rear view
all the time and making sure that there

was nothing going on behind me.

Everything was fine.

Suddenly, my phone rang.

It was Paco.

Paco said, pull into Junction 13.

I said, no, Paco, I'm not pulling into
Junction 13.

It's a bad idea for us to be together.

He then pleaded.

He then said, look, people who are
running the operation are at Junction

Don't drive past Junction 13. This is
where we need to be.

So with that, I thought, well, there's
something wrong here.

I don't want to meet these people.
They've nothing to do with me. I don't

them to see my face.

However, it seems there's no getting out
of this.

It had to happen.

All right.

Goodbye, Paco.

Eventually, I approach.

Junction 13.

And then I saw two cars in front of me.

I put my brakes on.

That was a moment that, clang,
something's happened.

I was in grave danger. There were men
with weapons.

I started to panic.

Time to get out.

This is my survival instinct.

I'm off.

I was looking for a means of escape.

There is this hotel building not too far
away.

I run into this entrance on the side of
this place.

It was under construction.

It was deserted.

I was just determined to escape.

I'd seen cars in the car park behind.

That's the best escape route.

So I tried these doors.

But everything was locked in desperation
trying these doors. I was just thinking

of just escape.

None of them would open.

The final door didn't open.

I turned around to go back the way I
came.

As I was doing this, five men came in
with guns,

pointing at me.

instantly there is a bodily reaction of
panic.

You don't know what is going to happen
next.

I'm in trouble now.

All thoughts of escape and evasion have
now disappeared. I had no other option

than to put my hands above my head and
say, tranquilo, hombres, por favor.

Calm down. I'm not going anywhere.

I'm all yours.

My heart is pounding.

And then the handcuffs came out.

I realised they were the police.

They then attacked me.

They kind of wore themselves out, giving
me this beating.

They were saying the words, which means
black belt. They knew I was a martial

artist. I was totally helpless.

I didn't realise this yet, but the
police, they had been listening to each

every telephone call Paco had made.

Paco telling me to pull into Junction 13
was great news for them because that

gave police...

all the time they needed to set an
ambush.

It's my fault. I should never have taken
Paco's proposition.

My first instinct on entering the
caravan child was monstrous trepidation.

I was injured and I was in a confused
state of mind.

My thoughts were tumbling through my
brain.

As I was being escorted to my cell, I
didn't see anybody else.

These were lonely corridors.

There's just the smell of old concrete
and murmurings, distant

noises of men.

Very strange feeling.

This was my first experience in prison.

I was then prodded into the cell.

The occupants were two Algerians.

We shook hands.

And they made me welcome.

When I cry to sleep, this is when
everything falls in on you.

I was worried about my Susan alone on a
hillside in southern Spain.

I'm now becoming conscious of the
consequences of what I've been up to.

Once Susan discovered where I was, I
wouldn't allow her to visit me.

I wouldn't allow her to see the
conditions that I was in.

The sensation is of total helplessness.

I am the cause. I am to blame.

One of the worst days of my life.

The daily routine in the prison was up
in the morning

and then exercise.

Then everybody's ushered out into the
yard.

To begin with, I was looking for other
Englishmen.

There wasn't anybody there.

I was just a foreigner surrounded by
other foreigners.

It didn't occur to me that they could be
my enemy.

One day I'd started walking around the
yard.

Suddenly, from behind, somebody grabbed
my elbow and then asked me,

he wanted me to buy him a coffee.

I just said no.

He produced a nine -inch long shank.

Now it's life -saving time.

He lunges at me.

My instincts took over

His

friend went to pick up the shank

I'm in a heightened state of adrenaline

They all looked at me. They all knew the
lone Brit is a serious person because

I'm a martial artist That's how I
survived in prison

I

Missed Susan

24 hours of the day.

I'm sure I missed her when I was asleep.

It was a continuing, prolonged sadness

that lived within me.

We conversed daily with each other by
mail.

This kept our bond

Live and strong.

Every day that I was in prison, I wrote
a letter.

She was supportive in every way.

Because of this, I started to write
journals of prison life and of the

life.

The writing particularly helped to get
it off my chest.

helped therapeutically, if you like.

She never, ever complained.

There was never, you shouldn't have done
this.

I told you so. There was never any of
that at all.

Everything was from the heart.

Everything was support.

Everything was love.

I was finally released in the year 2000.

Susan was waiting for me.

This was absolutely the most important
day of my life.

The moment I see her face, the world
changed.

In that instance, the world changed.

And it was an unforgettable moment when
we embraced.

I was totally oblivious to everything
around me.

Now life begins again.