The mother of a 20-year-old man who died after a package of cocaine burst inside his stomach while he was in Dubai has gone on trial accused of his manslaughter.

Jensen Westhead, from Thornton-Cleveleys, Lancashire, swallowed packages of the Class A drug before flying from Manchester to the United Arab Emirates.

He was found dead in his hotel room at the Avalon Hotel on December 5, 2024, just a day after arriving.

His mother, Rebecca Hatch, 45, and stepfather, Glenn Hatch, 51, are among five people accused of being involved in the alleged smuggling operation.

Opening the case at Preston Crown Court, prosecutor Jacob Hallam KC said the couple helped Jensen renew his passport and drove him to Manchester Airport, knowing the purpose of his trip.

Jurors were shown messages exchanged between Jensen and his mother while he was travelling to Dubai.

During the flight, Jensen told her: ‘Need a s**t real bad.’

She replied: ‘FFS don’t go for a s**t now son. Do it as soon as you land. Don’t say nothing at all till you land there to no one x.’ [sic]

Prosecutors say the exchange showed Rebecca knew her son was carrying drugs which he would need to pass.

The day before his death, Jensen also sent his mother a photograph of laxatives bearing a Gulf label. She responded by discussing expensive perfume and duty-free shopping, the court heard.

When Lancashire Police officers visited the family home on December 5 to tell the couple Jensen had died, Rebecca reportedly said: ‘I told you this would happen, they f***ing left him.’

She did not explain what she meant when questioned, jurors were told.

The couple said they believed Jensen had travelled abroad alone for a holiday and was meeting friends. They also said they had spoken to him on FaceTime while he was on the plane and at the hotel.

But Mr Hallam told the court: ‘The prosecution say they weren’t being candid about their knowledge of, or involvement in Jensen’s travels, nor their knowledge of or involvement in the purpose behind them.’

He said Jensen had travelled to Dubai to smuggle drugs out of the UK and that he did so with the ‘knowing assistance’ of the defendants.

Three other people are also standing trial.

Alexander Tofton, 33, is alleged to have recruited Jensen and acted as the UK side of the operation. Joseph Watson, 32, is accused of being the Dubai-based organiser who met Jensen after he arrived.

Steven Stephenson, 48, is alleged to have met Jensen at a hotel near Manchester Airport shortly before his flight. His fingerprints were found on one of the packages recovered from Jensen’s stomach during the post-mortem examination.

The court also heard that Rebecca’s phone had been in contact with Tofton around the time of the trip, while Glenn allegedly searched online for ‘drugs mule meaning’.

Prosecutors further claim Stephenson’s phone was factory reset five days after Jensen’s death, while Tofton changed his phone.

A note recovered from Tofton’s home reportedly read: ‘Feel sorry, feel responsible for death.’ Prosecutors say it referred to Jensen.

Messages found on Watson’s phone after his arrest included one in which he said: ‘I don’t know if I can come back to the UK because of that thing with that kid. Like there’s a chance I would get nicked.’

Rebecca and Glenn Hatch, Tofton, of Lytham St Annes, Watson, of Wednesbury, and Stephenson, of Denton, Greater Manchester, all deny manslaughter and being concerned in the exportation of a Class A drug.

Tofton also denies failing to disclose his phone PIN to police.

The trial continues.

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