UK authorities removed a container from a ship en route to Antwerp in which 398 kilograms of heroin was concealed within a cover load of towels and bathrobes
An international law enforcement investigation has resulted in one of the largest ever seizures of heroin in the UK.
National Crime Agency (NCA) intelligence had identified a container vessel suspected of carrying a large drugs shipment en route to Antwerp, Belgium.
398 kilograms of heroin removed
The vessel docked in Felixstowe on 1 August. The following day, officers from Border Force and the NCA removed a container in which approximately 398 kilograms of heroin was concealed within a cover load of towels and bathrobes.
The heroin was removed and the container returned to the vessel, which carried on to the port of Antwerp.
On arrival, the container was collected by lorry and taken to Rotterdam – all the time under police surveillance. On 5 August, as suspects took steps to unload the contents, Dutch Police moved in and made two arrests.
The NCA simultaneously arrested a man from Bromsgrove who is currently being questioned by NCA officers.
The drugs would be worth at least £9m to organised criminals selling the whole consignment at wholesale, and at least £40m at street level in the UK and other European countries.
International partnership against crime
NCA Regional Operations Manager, Colin Williams, said:
Mark Kennedy, Border Force Deputy Director, said: