A LORRY driver has been jailed for six-and-a-half years for his involvement in a £1 million conspiracy to supply drugs.

Stephen Jones had been told to expect a sentence of around eight years, but it was reduced after a judge heard that he had been on bail waiting to be punished for two years.

Maidstone Crown Court heard that Jones, of Sir Evelyn Road, Rochester, smuggled 1.19 tonnes of cannabis through Portsmouth ferry terminal on June 26, 2003.

But the illicit consignment, hidden in machinery, had already been intercepted by customs officers and replaced with sand.

Jones, 47, was arrested after he drove the lorry to a business centre in Strood, where he was employed by a man calling himself Brian Wilson, but was thought to have a false identity.

Jones entered a guilty plea to the conspiracy charge on the basis that he was not an organiser, but an employee or "gopher".

Sean Larkin, prosecuting, said it was accepted that Jones was "at the bottom of the pile".

Craig Rush, defending, said on Friday at the sentencing hearing: "This case for him is nothing short of a tragedy."

He had become involved with Wilson and was offered a job which would allow him to spend more time with his family, instead of travelling so frequently to the Continent.

"His involvement was nothing more than a driver," said Mr Rush. "It comes as a tremendous relief to him to have this matter resolved."

Mr Rush said it was nobody’s fault that the case had taken so long to reach court.

"Tragically, last year his 21-year-old son died in suspicious circumstances. It is currently under investigation by the police," he said.

"That really was the final straw. He stands before you very much a broken man. He hopes you can show mercy. He had the courage to enter a guilty plea knowing it would be a prison sentence of some length."

Mr Recorder Peter Digney told Jones: "This matter has been a tragedy for you. You are punished in many ways and will be punished out of proportion to any benefit you possibly received."

The judge said he had not been aware that Jones had the matter hanging over him for two years.

"I reduce the sentence further because of that," he said. "This is causing havoc in your private life. I take into account there are other tragic circumstances in your life."