I suppose times are hard, with poor old cabin crew having to resort to all means to top up their "meagre" salaries. Sadly all that money he spent on contraband went down the drain (or rather into the incinerator).
BA cabin crew member smuggled cigarettes
By Suzy Talbot
August 24, 2010
A BRITISH Airways cabin crew member has been given a community sentence for smuggling tobacco into the country.
Christakis Lambrou, from Lansdowne Road in Staines, admitted being knowingly concerned in the fraudulent evasion of the duty chargeable and was sentenced to 120 hours of community service on August 20 at Isleworth Crown Court.
Customs officers examined Lambrou's car on August 15 last year and discovered six kilos of hand rolling tobacco and 2,000 cigarettes.
He was arrested, interviewed and subsequently charged. A further 11,760 cigarettes and five kilos of hand rolling tobacco were found at his house in Staines. He claimed he had bought them for his brother and brother's friend.
John Cooper, assistant director of criminal investigation for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) , said: “Lambrou abused his position of trust as a cabin crew manager to evade UK duty.
"Lambrou’s actions cost the UK vital tax revenue, worth around £18,000, and this is why HMRC works closely with UKBA (Border Agency) officers to disrupt this kind of criminal operation."
The cigarettes have been shredded and burned at a power station to fuel the National Grid.