A man who sent and received cannabis and cash through his local post office has been given a suspended prison sentence at Truro Crown Court, as first reported by Cornwall Live.

Kai Thompson, 23, now of Forge Drive, Lelant, was sentenced on Thursday 10 September 2026 to 14 months in prison, suspended for two years. The court also ordered 20 days of rehabilitation, 150 hours of unpaid work and £350 in court costs, and ordered the forfeiture of all cash seized from him.

How the case came to light

Post office staff first raised concerns in December 2023, when a parcel addressed to Thompson’s then address in St Ives aroused suspicion. Devon and Cornwall Police were called, and the package was found to contain jars and labels for cannabis.

Officers searched the property and found more than 430g of cannabis and other drug paraphernalia, along with evidence of drug dealing from conversations on his phone. More than £44,800 was recovered, stored in vacuum-sealed bags inside plastic boxes. Thompson was arrested on suspicion of drug dealing and money laundering and was released under police investigation.

In April this year, staff at the same post office again alerted police after smelling cannabis from a parcel linked to him. That package contained about £1,880 in cash, and cannabis was found in some of the parcels he had sent and received.

He was arrested again and his property was searched. Officers recovered just under 290g of cannabis, about £11,200 in a cash box and a small amount of ketamine.

Charges and sentencing

Thompson was charged with conspiracy to conceal, disguise, convert, transfer or remove criminal property, possession of ketamine, being concerned in the supply of a Class B controlled drug (cannabis), and acquiring, using or possessing criminal property. He pleaded guilty to all counts at the magistrates’ court earlier this year.

The sentencing hearing heard that he had been sending parcels through the post office twice a week.

In mitigation, his barrister said Thompson had accepted responsibility and was remorseful. The court heard he works at a hotel in St Ives and hopes to train as an electrician. The barrister said Thompson had used cannabis to manage scoliosis and would now seek medical help for the condition.

Recorder Serena Gates KC said she had read a pre-sentence report that spoke positively of his attitude to wanting to change. She also noted details of his family background that were put before the court.

Cannabis is a Class B drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, and supplying it is a criminal offence.