A former Premier League player 'threw away' his professional career for a four-jail term over a £5,000 pay day for a drug deal, a judge said today.
Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, who played for Arsenal and a string of other clubs, arranged for his girlfriend and another friend to bring suitcases with what the women thought was gold into the UK from Thailand.
But the luggage was filled with 132lb of cannabis which was found when they were stopped and searched at Stansted Airport, leading to Emmanuel-Thomas' arrest.
Within days of being charged, he was sacked by Scottish Championship side Greenock Morton and is now starting his time behind bars after admitting cannabis importation with a street value of £600,000 worth of the Class B drug.
Chelmsford Crown Court heard he had offered the two women £2,500 for a free holiday to Thailand, while he was expecting just £5,000 if the operation was successful.
