A van driver who claimed he was delivering a hot tub has been jailed after £220,000 worth of cannabis was discovered inside a purpose-built hiding place running along the roof of his vehicle. Lithuanian national Paulius Andrulis, 37, was arrested at Belfast Port after arriving in Northern Ireland on a ferry from Cairnryan, Scotland, on June 15, 2025. Border Force officers stopped Andrulis and questioned him about his journey. He told officers he was delivering a hot tub to an address in Mullingar in the Republic of Ireland. However, a search of the van uncovered a sophisticated concealment built into the vehicle’s roof. Inside, officers discovered 27.5kg of herbal cannabis, a Class B drug, with an estimated value of £220,000. The purpose-built hide ran the entire length of the van’s roof and could be accessed through the top of the rear doors. Andrulis was arrested the following day on suspicion of possessing a controlled drug with intent to supply. During questioning, he denied knowing the cannabis was inside the vehicle. He claimed a man he knew only as “Sprite” had asked him to make the delivery and said he had been instructed to leave the van at an address, where it would be returned several hours later after the supposed hot tub had been removed. National Crime Agency investigators did not accept his account. The NCA said its investigation indicated Andrulis was likely to have been involved in a number of previous smuggling runs. Andrulis appeared at Laganside Crown Court on June 29, where he admitted the offence. He returned to the same court on Tuesday, August 11, and was sentenced to two years and two months in prison. NCA Branch Commander David Cunningham said: “Paulius Andrulis went to great lengths to hide this haul of drugs in his van, with a specialist hide running the length of the roof. “He denied any knowledge of these drugs but our investigation showed he had likely been involved in several previous smuggling runs and his account at interview lacked credibility.
“We are grateful to our partners at Border Force who discovered these drugs. The NCA will continue to do all we can to stop drugs being smuggled into Northern Ireland and across the border.”
