A lorry driver has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for smuggling cocaine worth £7 million concealed within a shipment of Kim Kardashian's Skims underwear brand.
Jakub Jan Konkel, 40, was transporting 28 pallets of legitimate Skims clothing from the Netherlands when Border Force officers stopped him at a port in Essex in September. The National Crime Agency (NCA) revealed that Konkel had made a brief stop en route to collect 90 kilograms of cocaine, and his lorry had been specially modified with a hidden compartment near the rear doors to store the drugs in 1kg packages.
Border Force officers discovered 90 packages of cocaine with a street value of approximately £7.2 million. Neither the exporter nor the importer had any knowledge of the smuggled drugs.
Konkel's tachograph, which records driver activity, indicated a 16-minute stop that he failed to mention during NCA interviews, believed to be when the drugs were loaded onto the vehicle. The shipment of clothing was entirely legitimate, and Konkel, from Kartuzy in northern Poland, admitted he agreed to transport the drugs for a payment of 4,500 euros (£3,900). He was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court.
NCA operations manager Paul Orchard stated: "Organised crime groups use corrupt drivers like Konkel to move Class A drugs often hidden on entirely legitimate loads such as this. The detection and investigation have removed a significant amount of cocaine whose profits are lost to the crime group behind the smuggling attempt, and with Konkel they’ve lost an important enabler."
He added: "The NCA works with partners at home and abroad to protect the public from the threat of Class A drugs, which are at the epicentre of huge amounts of crime and suffering in UK communities."
Border Force Assistant Director Jason Thorn commented: "These drugs destroy lives and inflict misery on our communities. This significant interception is testament to the brilliant work of Border Force, depriving criminal networks of millions in profit. We continue to work round the clock to relentlessly pursue criminality, protect our borders and keep these dangerous drugs off our streets."
Skims, co-founded in June 2019 by Kim Kardashian, Swedish entrepreneur Jens Grede, and Emma Grede, emphasises body positivity and inclusivity. Kardashian has stated she was inspired by her own habit of altering clothes and had been designing shapewear for 15 years before launching the brand. In March 2022, Skims was named to TIME's list of the 100 Most Influential Companies, and in October 2023, it announced its first venture into menswear.
