Two held after £6.8m cocaine seized

Two men have been arrested after Border Force officers seized cocaine with a street value of £6.8 million on a lorry at a UK ferryport.

The seizure was made at Portsmouth, Hampshire, after the vehicle arrived on a ferry from Caen, France, on October 18.

The drugs, weighing 68kg, were found after the vehicle was searched and is one of the largest seizures of cocaine made at Portsmouth so far this year.

The men arrested, a 31-year-old from Orpington in Kent and a 43-year-old British man who lives in Spain, have been bailed pending further inquiries until February next year.

Andy Lumb, from Border Force, said: "As this detection shows, our officers are on constant alert, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to keep drugs, other smuggled goods and illegal persons out of the UK.

"We are determined to prevent this terrible trade which can have such a destructive impact on the lives of so many."

PA