Just prior to Christmas, British customs officers were instructed to pay no attention to flying ‘mules’ passing through Heathrow airport in London. Due to reduced holiday staffing, Britain’s busiest airport was wide open to drug smugglers for a three day period. The UK Daily Mail learned that a UK Border Agency official sent a highly controversial email to the staff at Heathrow.   It read: ‘We would seek your co-operation in managing this situation by asking that you do not actively seek to identify any passenger with internal concealments for three days up to and including Christmas Day.’   The email which was leaked by a whistleblower within the agency was also said to have warned customs officers that if smugglers were detained, the arresting officer would be required to guard the prisoners for a 24-hour shift. The UK Border Agency’s senior detection manager, Mark Kennedy blamed staffing shortages for the controversial...(Read Full Post)