Bradford mum jailed after involving family in international cocaine conspiracy
The 54 year old will serve more than 13 years behind bars
Last updated 18th Jul 2025
A Bradford mum who involved her children in an international plot to smuggle more than £14m worth of cocaine into the UK has been jailed for 13 years and four months.
Farzana Kauser, 54 and of Waterlily Road in Manningham, worked with an accomplice in Pakistan to move large quantities of the Class A drugs from Mexico into Britain.
She was arrested in November 2024 at Birmingham Airport and maintained her innocence at the time, claiming to be picking up her children.
However National Crime Agency investigators had found out that her kids were carrying 180kg of cocaine through customs.
They'd taken short trips to Amsterdam or Dublin without bags and had timed their return flights to arrive at the same time as a plane from Cancun.
A corrupt insider had loaded suitcases onto flights from Mexico containing millions of pounds worth of cocaine.
Kauser's four sons, one daughter and a daughter in law were tasked with picking up the cases and carrying them through security as if they were their own bags.
Her four eldest children admitted their roles in the conspiracy. Her youngest son and daughter-in-law pleaded guilty to participating in the activities of an organised crime group.
All will serve sentences of between 8 and 11 years except the youngest son, who is due to be sentenced in October.
Rick Mackenzie, NCA senior investigating officer, said: “To her friends and people who thought they knew her, Farzana Kauser was a thoughtful, loving mum who seemed very normal.
“She was very well practised in her life as a high-end cocaine trafficker and she took great pains to delete any trail of evidence.
“She led this crime group with dedication and determination, often instructing her children on how to smuggle the drugs effectively and on what techniques to employ.
“She pushed her children into huge danger and has allowed their futures to be effectively destroyed.
“Her youngest son was just 17 when he was encouraged to play a major role in couriering drugs into the country, drugs that wreck countless lives across the UK in their links to violence, addiction and other crimes.
“The NCA works side by side with partners at home and abroad to combat the threat Class A drugs pose to the UK.”