A TEENAGE couple were caught trying to smuggle tobacco valued at more than £11,000 in unpaid duty through Leeds Bradford Airport, a court heard.

Kamil Osinski, 19, and partner Paulina Prusakiewicz, also 19, both of Torun, Poland, arrived at the airport on a flight from Tenerife on July 24, 2015.

Inside their luggage, Border Force officers discovered 34,420 cigarettes and 15 kilos of hand-rolling tobacco.

The case was passed to HMRC to investigate and, during interview, Prusakiewicz said an unnamed male, who knew she was going on holiday, had given her money to buy the tobacco.

Osinski replied "no comment" to all questions.

Both defendants pleaded guilty to the fraudulent evasion of excise duty, totalling £11,340.32 when they appeared at Leeds Magistrates’ Court and were each sentenced to 16 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months, by District Judge David Kitson.

After the case, an HMRC spokesman said: "Disrupting criminal trade is at the heart of our strategy to clamp down on the illicit tobacco market, which costs the UK about £2.1 billion a year. This is theft from the taxpayer and undermines legitimate traders."