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French border force seizes £20 million worth of cocaine bound for UK

02 May 2020 19:32 (UTC +04:00)

Border Force authorities in France have captured more than 260 kilos of cocaine bound for Kent in the UK, APA reports citing Sputnik

The cocaine, which was alleged to have a street value of about £20 million, was found in a number of plywood boxes in a lorry at the Channel Tunnel terminal in Coquelles, France, on Tuesday.

The lorry’s driver, reportedly a Romanian national, was arrested on suspicion of importing Class A drugs, with an investigation being launched by the UK’s National Crime Agency.

Chris Philp, minister for immigration compliance, is quoted by KentOnline as saying that, “this seizure has taken millions of pounds worth of cocaine out of the hands of organised criminals and off our streets”.

“Drugs are currency for organised gangs and are intrinsically linked to crime, violence and exploitation which is why we will do all we can to stop drug traffickers and bring them to justice”, Mr Philip added.

The National Crime Agency’s branch commander in the coastal Kent town of Dover said that, “we know that international OCGs remain criminally active and despite the restrictions on movement brought about by coronavirus”.

“As a result of joint working between the NCA and our Border Force partners, attempts to smuggle significant quantities of drugs have been thwarted before creating harm to our communities in the UK”, he added.