Lorry driver Jakub Jan Konkel, 40, was found to have hidden £7million worth of cocaine in hidden compartments while transporting a legitimate shipment of Kim Kardashian’s underwear brand Skims
A lorry driver has been jailed for smuggling £7million worth of cocaine in a shipment of Kim Kardashian’s underwear brand.Jakub Jan Konkel, 40, was driving a truck carrying 28 pallets of legitimate Skims clothing from the Netherlands when he was stopped by border officials at a port in Essex in September. The National Crime Agency said Konkel had stopped on the way to collect 90 kilograms of cocaine – and that the lorry had been specially adapted so that he could hide the drugs in 1kg packages in a secret compartment near the back doors. Border Force officers found 90 packages with a street value of around £7.2million.
Konkel’s tachograph, which records driver activity, showed a 16-minute stop that he failed to declare to the NCA when interviewed by detectives – thought to be when the drugs were loaded onto the vehicle.
The shipment of clothing was legitimate, and neither the exporter nor importer had any knowledge of to the smuggled load. Konkel, from Kartuzy in northern Poland, said he had agreed to transport the drugs for a payment of 4,500 euros (£3,900). He was sentenced to 13 years in prison for drug smuggling at Chelmsford Crown Court.
NCA operations manager Paul Orchard said: “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.
“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 said: “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 was co-founded in June 2019 by Kim Kardashian, Swedish entrepreneur Jens Grede and Emma Grede and their clothes emphasise body positivity and inclusivity.
Before creating the Skims line, Kardashian said she had been inspired by her own habit of altering clothes and said she had been designing ‘shapewear’ for 15 years.
In March 2022 Skims was so successful that it made it on to TIME’s List of 100 Most Influential Companies of the year. In October 2023, Skims announced the company’s first venture into menswear.
