The British judiciary has sentenced Eddie Burton, a 23-year-old from Liverpool, to 24 years in prison for his involvement in an international drug trafficking ring. international drug trafficking network..
Burton, who was arrested in an Ibiza nightclub in August 2023, orchestrated a million-dollar drug trafficking operation with his partner, smuggling more than 300 kilos of cocaine, heroin and ketamine hidden in trucks into the UK.
The sentence follows an investigation by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA), which dismantled the network after intercepting two trucks at the Port of Dover in 2022. The drugs seized had a street value of £20 million (around €24 million).
International network operating from Ibiza and Amsterdam
Burton had moved his operations to Europe in 2021, setting up shop between the Netherlands and Spain, from where he coordinated the shipments. His partner and accomplice, Sian Banks, 25, played the role of facilitator, helping to prepare the drugs in Amsterdam and transporting them to the UK in his hand luggage.
British authorities had been on Burton’s trail for months when in August 2023 he was tracked down and arrested at the Pacha nightclub in Ibiza. At the time of his arrest, the young man was using a false identity to avoid being identified. Following his capture, he was extradited first to Germany and then to the United Kingdom, where he has been tried and convicted.
The arrest that put an end to his drug trafficking network
The NCA investigation revealed that Burton had left his fingerprints and DNA on the drug packages and in the hidden compartment of a modified truck carrying the goods. In messages with his partner, he acknowledged the risk of being identified, but was confident that she had no prior record and could not be linked to the shipments.
Burton’s conviction adds to those of other members of the organization. His partner, Sian Banks, has also been found guilty and will face sentencing on February 12.
“They thought they could operate with impunity.”
National Crime Agency commander John Turner said after the sentencing that Burton and his network believed they could operate without consequence from overseas.
“The drugs they tried to introduce would have caused irreparable damage in our communities, fueling violence and exploitation. The swift action of the security forces prevented this organization from continuing to operate with impunity.”
The 24-year sentence marks the end of the criminal career of a young man who tried to build a drug empire, but whose attempt to flee justice ended in one of Ibiza’s most emblematic nightclubs.
Banks was arrested in December 2023 and pleaded guilty on February 3 to drug trafficking and money laundering offenses. The final sentence for both will be known on February 12 at Canterbury Crown Court.
The British authorities have highlighted the impact of this operation, noting that the intercepted shipments would have had a serious impact on vulnerable communities in the United Kingdom. With their arrest, a network operating with impunity between Spain, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom has been dismantled.
