Katie Carter, a 28-year-old mum from Handforth, Cheshire, has been jailed after attempting to smuggle cannabis into HMP Altcourse while visiting her imprisoned boyfriend, Paul Cordingley.
During the visit on April 20, 2023, Carter brought items of clothing for Cordingley, including a pair of Nike React trainers. When scanned by prison X-ray equipment, officers discovered the soles of the shoes had been hollowed out and filled with cannabis resin. One shoe contained 65.3 grams of the drug, and the other 30.8 grams—together carrying a prison street value estimated between £950 and £1,400.
Carter initially denied knowledge of the drugs, claiming she was unaware they were concealed in the shoes. Prosecutors, however, said she had been under the influence of Cordingley, describing her as “in his thrall.”
Carter had previously received an 18-month suspended sentence for class A drug supply offences, handed down just 16 days before the prison visit. That earlier conviction coincided with her discovery that she was pregnant. Cordingley, her partner, had been jailed during the same hearing.
Callum Ross, defending, told the court that while Carter respected the jury’s verdict, she stood by her explanation that she was pressured into the act. He emphasized that she gained no financial benefit from the smuggling attempt and had otherwise remained out of trouble since April 2023.
Despite her prior suspended sentence, Carter was now handed a custodial sentence after the court determined she had breached her previous terms and engaged in further criminal activity.
