00:00Worth an estimated £96 million, the seizure at the London Gatesway port in Essex marks the sixth largest cocaine seizure since records began.
00:12The Minister for Migration and Citizenship, Seema Malhotra, said drugs gangs trying to import illegal substances into the UK are a blight on society.
00:26And we will leave no stone unturned in our pursuit of organised crime gangs, inflicting addiction, misery and death upon Britain's communities.
00:38The Home Office said cocaine-related deaths in England and Wales rose by 31 per cent between 2022 and 2023.
00:48Border Force maritime director Charlie Eastor said this seizure, one of the largest of its kind, is just one example of how dedicated Border Force maritime officers remain one step ahead of the criminal gangs who threaten our security.
01:08Containerships are one of the main methods used by gangs to smuggle cocaine into the UK, Mr Eastor told the Times newspaper.
01:18A little further afield, a haul of 20 firearms, 320 rounds of ammunition and 170 kilograms of ketamine, as well as 4,000 MDMA pills, were found in a lorry at Doverport.
01:31National crime agency investigators estimate the street value of the ketamine would have been around £4.5 million and £40,000 for the MDMA.
