Professional footballer Jay Emmanuel-Thomas has been charged in connection with an attempt to smuggle £600,000 worth of cannabis through Stansted Airport.

The 33-year-old striker, who currently plays for Scottish Championship club Greenock Morton, was arrested by officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) shortly after 8am on Wednesday in Gourock, Inverclyde.

The former Livingston, Aberdeen, and Arsenal academy player, who resides on Cardwell Road in Gourock, was detained and questioned by officers. He has been remanded in custody ahead of an expected court appearance on Thursday.

Emmanuel-Thomas has also played for Ipswich Town, Bristol City, Queens Park Rangers, and the Thai club PTT Rayong.

The arrest followed the NCA’s seizure of an estimated £600,000 worth of the class B drug, which was being smuggled through Stansted Airport on 2nd September.

Border Force officers detected approximately 60kg of the drug in two suitcases that had arrived on a flight from Bangkok, Thailand.

Emmanuel-Thomas is due to appear before Carlisle Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, where he faces charges of importing class B drugs.

Two women, aged 28 and 32, were also arrested and appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court. They have been granted bail and are scheduled to appear at Chelmsford Crown Court on 1st October.

NCA Senior Investigating Officer David Phillips said: “The NCA continues to work with partners such as Border Force to target those involved in drug smuggling, including both the couriers and the organisers."

The arrest comes amidst a warning from the NCA to travellers arriving in the UK from Thailand, Canada, and the United States. The agency cautioned that those attempting to bring cannabis into the country face lengthy prison sentences, following a significant rise in arrests.

So far this year, the agency reports that the amount of cannabis seized is more than triple the figure from 2023.

The NCA also highlighted that drug couriers are often misled by their superiors into believing that, if caught, they would only face a fine. However, the maximum sentence for smuggling cannabis into the UK is 14 years’ imprisonment.

A spokesperson for Greenock Morton declined to comment.