AN America’s Got Talent star went from performing for millions on TV to being bullied in a UK prison.
Elijah Flores, 28, from Glendova in California, rocketed to fame as a dancer on the US show.
He jetted around the world performing – before suffering a brutal change of fortune at Manchester Airport last November.
Customs officers pulled Flores aside as he got off a flight from Thailand, even though he said he had nothing to declare.
They found 64 bags of cannabis in his luggage, which included a Gucci rucksack.
The packages weighed 37.02kg and were worth a whopping £960,000, Manchester Crown Court heard.
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Flores told the officers he feared he had “penile cancer” after Googling the symptoms – but could not afford medical insurance for tests or treatment.
The dancer claimed a “friend” had offered him $3,000 (£2,353) to smuggle the drugs into the UK.
Hugh Barton, mitigating, said: “There was no fall back position for him.
“It was in that context he was approached by a ‘friend’, more somebody who took advantage of his state of apprehension.
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“They offered this as a means of raising an amount of cash quickly.”
Phil Hall, prosecuting, said: “He was given instructions of what to do via a WhatsApp group on his phone that contained four other people.
“He was told that someone would contact him on his arrival into the UK and collect the suitcases from him.
“He was a drug mule, performing a limited function and had no influence on others.”
The America’s Got Talent star was jailed for a year and six months after pleading guilty to the fraudulent evasion of the prohibition of importing cannabis.
He will serve half the term in a Liverpool prison before he will be eligible for automatic deportation.
JAILHOUSE ROCK
The court heard that Flores works as a cleaner and cook behind bars – but has been bullied by other lags.
His fellow inmates took a dislike to the Californian dancer for “not giving big enough portions of chips”.
Barton said: “It’s difficult to envisage the kind of events that would lead him to Liverpool prison – it’s totally out of character.
“He is desperate to return home to his family, and to his career.
“He has not been served deportation pages, but it is his intention to return to the US as quickly as he can.”
Sentencing, Recorder Katie Jones told Flores: “You were trusted with a large amount of cannabis.
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“I find you must have had some form of understanding of the scale of the operation.
“You were willing to take on this role and fully understood what was involved and what was expected of you.”
