£100 million of cocaine seized at Dover during a Police Scotland investigation

Around a tonne of cocaine worth up to £100 million has been seized at Dover concealed within a shipment of fruit.

The drugs were found in the early hours of Tuesday hidden in pallets that had arrived at the Kent port on a vessel from South America.

"Working together we will relentlessly pursue those who seek to bring misery to our communities whether they are in Scotland or elsewhere in the world."

The discovery was part of a joint National Crime Agency and Police Scotland Organised Crime Partnership investigation.

Searches have been carried out in Glasgow and Essex as the investigation continues, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said.

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of importing class A drugs: a 40-year-old in Brentwood, Essex, and a 64-year-old in central Glasgow.

Both were questioned before being released under investigation.

The investigation is linked to Operation Venetic, which has so far seen hundreds of arrests across the UK following the infiltration of an encrypted communications platform.

NCA director of investigations Nikki Holland said: "This is a huge seizure of class A drugs.

"This operation has prevented a large amount of cocaine from making it on to our streets, we estimate that once adulterated and sold it could have had a street value of up to £100 million.

"So in making this seizure we have taken away a valuable commodity that would have been sold to fund further serious and organised criminality.

"Our investigation into this attempted importation is continuing."

Angela McLaren, assistant chief constable organised crime, counter terrorism and intelligence, said: "This seizure is undoubtedly a massive setback for serious and organised criminals.

"This operation and our other recent successes underline our unwavering commitment to working with partners, including the NCA, Border Force and SOC Taskforce, to disrupt this sort of criminality.

"Working together we will relentlessly pursue those who seek to bring misery to our communities whether they are in Scotland or elsewhere in the world."

Minister for Immigration Compliance and the Courts Chris Philip added: “This was another excellent seizure which demonstrates the work of Border Force officers who work tirelessly on the frontline to prevent Class A drugs such as cocaine from reaching the streets.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.