Former Arsenal player admits involvement in £600,000 drug smuggling plot

Jay Emmanuel-Thomas has admitted his involvement in an attempt to smuggle £600,000 of cannabis into the UK.

The 34-year-old, who played five times under Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, was arrested on September 2, 2024.

2 Emmanuel-Thomas was playing in Scotland when the arrest took place last year Credit: Getty

He subsequently had his contract terminated by Scottish Championship side Greenock Morton shortly after.

The arrest was conducted by the National Crime Agency [NCA] and took place in Gourock, Inverclyde, while the smuggling occurred at Stansted Airport.

Emmanuel-Thomas, who played his best football at Bristol City, has now pleaded guilty to the offence.

He will be sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court at a later date.

The maximum sentence for cannabis importation in the UK is 14 years in prison.

The father of two initially denied the charge in October when he pleaded not guilty at Chelmsford Crown Court, speaking via video link from HMP Durham.

Rosie Rowland, 28, and Yasmin Piotrowska, 33, were initially charged alongside Emmanuel-Thomas but those charges have now been dropped.

Prosecutor David Josse KC said the NCA conducted a 'very thorough investigation'.

He also said Rowland and Piotrowska's involvement was discontinued after analysis of Emmanuel-Thomas' phone, and the pair wept as they left the court.

"They thought they were importing gold, not cannabis," the prosecutor said.

2 Emmanuel-Thomas won the FA Youth Cup and went on to make five appearances under Wenger Credit: Getty

The NCA previously said the drugs arrived in suitcases from Bangkok via Dubai.

Born in Forest Gate, London, Emmanuel-Thomas broke through Arsenal's famed academy in 2010 but only appeared for the first team five times, and once in the Premier League.

He spent the next three seasons on loan at Blackpool, Doncaster Rovers and Cardiff before joining Ipswich permanently - all four teams played in the Championship at the time.

The striker then dropped down to League One with Bristol City, with whom he made his most appearances and scored the most goals - 33 in 103 games.

After stints at QPR, MK Dons and Gillingham, he departed England for the first time, joining PTT Rayong in Thailand and later Jamshedpur in India.

He then spent the later stages of his career in Scotland, joining Greenock Morton in 2024 from Kidderminster Harriers.

Shortly after his arrest, his new club put out a statement, saying: "Greenock Morton FC can confirm that the contract of Jay Emmanuel-Thomas has been terminated with immediate effect.

"The club will be making no further comment on the matter."

Emmanuel-Thomas won the 2008/09 FA Youth Cup alongside future first-team regulars Jack Wilshere and Francis Coquelin and was projected to have a big future.

He appeared at international level for England's under 17s and under 19s.

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