£5m of cannabis found in lorry (From Salisbury Journal)

£5m of cannabis found in lorry

1:45pm Monday 11th March 2013 in National News © Press Association 2013

Cannabis resin with a street value of around £5 million has been found hidden in metal boxes inside a lorry.

The 1.7-tonne haul is believed to be the largest seizure of the drug in the history of Kent Police.

Officers made the discovery after attending a farm in Sandy Lane, Ashford, Kent on Friday and stopped a lorry which was hauling a 40ft (12.2m) refrigerated container.

Inside the lorry, investigators found two bright-blue metal boxes which contained cannabis resin with an estimated street value of £4.9 million.

The driver was arrested and two other men were later detained by officers from Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate.

Detective Chief Inspector Eddie Fox said: "We have been successful in taking a staggering amount of illegal drugs off of the streets. This was a huge haul which will never make its way into circulation in the county."

The discovery followed the arrest of two men on March 4 in Paddock Wood, after 440lb (200kg) of cannabis resin was seized.

Hugh Webb, 52, of Stanfield Gardens, Dagenham, Essex, and Michael Malone, 46, of Rutland Road, Hove, East Sussex, have been charged over supplying cannabis resin following the seizure in Ashford.

A third man, 39-year-old Martin Merritt of Grosvenor Road, Dagenham, faces the same charge along with a charge of possessing an offensive weapon.

In relation to the Paddock Wood investigation, police said Danny Malone, 43, of Collier Street, Tonbridge, and Marek Sieprawski, 34, were charged with conspiring to supply class B drugs.