Nicholas John Baker - Background and Arrest

Background and Arrest

Baker, a trained chef and former sandwich-shop manager, ran a fencing business in his home town of Stroud, Gloucestershire, where he lived with his fiancée and their baby son. Baker had met Prunier 3 years before through a mutual interest in football. Prunier had problems with depression, drug and alcohol abuse, and later admitted that he had been involved in criminal activities at this time.

Baker said that Prunier and he, who had been travelling together in Europe, had decided to go to Japan before the 2002 FIFA World Cup to buy souvenirs and allow Prunier to rent a flat for the tournament. Baker and Prunier left Brussels National Airport in Belgium on April 12, transited through London's Heathrow Airport and arrived at Tokyo's Narita airport at approximately 11:00 a.m. JST, on April 13, 2002.

Baker claimed in a later statement that he had been drinking and was tired from the long flight. He reported that after Prunier and he were split-up at airport immigration, they had met up again at the baggage carousel, and Prunier had told him "I haven't seen your bag yet, Nick. You grab this and get in a queue and I'll join you when yours comes out." When the bag Baker was carrying was searched in customs, 41,120 tablets of ecstasy and 992.5 grams of cocaine were found hidden in false compartments of the suitcase, the largest single illegal drugs haul at Narita airport at that time.

Baker, who has a heavy regional accent, reported that he had told the customs officials, who had limited English language skills, that the case was Prunier's. According to the prosecution at his trial, Baker had the suitcase key in his possession, and threw it into the suitcase during the search. Prunier passed through customs, and although Japanese police monitored his mobile telephone conversations and his movements (including photographing his departure from Japan two days later), he was not detained or questioned.