Baby-faced mastermind who ran huge drug smuggling ring with glam gangster’s moll – before £20m empire came crashing down

THIS is the baby-faced kingpin who masterminded a cause smuggling ringing with his glam woman - earlier their £20million empire collapsed.

Eddie Burton, 23, and Sian Banks, 25, orchestrated 2 large-scale cause importations arsenic the brace conspired to flood the UK with heroin, cocaine and ketamine.

Border Force officials stopped 2 lorries successful the summer of 2022 containing 307 kilos of drugs with a thoroughfare worth of £20million.

A immense manhunt was launched for Burton, whose DNA was recovered connected the smuggled goods.

Cops managed to way the transgression to enactment land Ibiza wherever helium was arrested successful Pacha nightclub.

He and Banks are facing years successful jailhouse aft pleading blameworthy to a fig of cause offences.

It tin present beryllium revealed that Burton's beingness of crime started erstwhile helium was conscionable a freckled youngster.

The crook was dealing drugs connected the streets of Liverpool from the property of conscionable ten.

Burton's household and friends told the Mail Online the gangster was a "tearaway" from a young age.

His gran said: "He was a spot of a young tearaway. I deliberation helium was selling drugs. So it's not that astonishing what's happened to him."

While wannabe influencer Banks was nary alien to transgression herself - carrying retired amerciable enactment to money a luxury lifestyle.

Her societal media pictures uncover a lavish mode of beingness - from yacht parties to glamorous nights out.

Although the mates person present split, substance messages recovered by police amusement their transportation portion moving the cause empire.

She besides made monthly trips to spot Burton successful Spain and the Netherlands wherever helium divided his clip betwixt June 2022 and October 2023

Banks flew retired to the Netherlands successful June 2022 to sojourn Burton and helped hole the archetypal shipment of drugs.

Concerned, she messaged Burton astir her fingerprints being connected the bags of ketamine.

Her transgression person replied: "You've ne'er been nicked oregon had ye prints took anyhow truthful doesn't matter."

On July 3, 2022, Border Force officials intercepted a lorry astatine Dover, Kent, containing 90 kilos of ketamine and 50 kilos of cocaine packed into boxes and a Lidl buying bag.

Then connected August 12, a 2nd lorry containing 142 kilos of cocaine and 25 kilos of heroin successful a substance vessel that had been modified to conceal the drugs was discovered.

Forensics recovered Burton's fingerprints and DNA connected some cause consignments, and the adapted substance tank.

Burton, who was utilizing an alias, was arrested by Spanish constabulary a twelvemonth aboriginal connected unrelated cause charges.

He was extradited to Germany earlier being returned to the UK successful March 2024 wherever helium admitted 4 counts of importing Class A and B drugs.

Banks pleaded blameworthy to 7 charges - including importing Class A drugs and money laundering.

The brace volition beryllium sentenced astatine Canterbury Crown Court connected February 11.

NCA Branch Commander John Turner said: "Burton, with Banks' help, attempted to smuggle immense quantities of harmful drugs into the UK, believing helium could run with impunity overseas.

"Banks held a important relation successful the transgression enterprise, laundering the illicit profits and acting arsenic the UK-based facilitator for the multi-million lb cause importations.

"The drugs, had they reached their last destination, would person had a destructive interaction connected our communities, fuelling unit and exploiting susceptible radical passim the proviso chain."