Four arrested in customs operations in the North

Four people have been arrested in a series of operations by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) over the last two weeks. Over 150,000 illegally imported cigarettes, and drugs with a street value of over £1m (€1.4m) have been seized.

On Wednesday of this week, a lorry driver from Dungannon, Co Tyrone was challenged by HMRC officers working at Dover Docks, as he arrived from Calais. Following the search of a lorry load of chocolates from Belgium, a pallet containing approximately 338 kilos of cannabis resin, with an estimated street value of £970,000 (€1,341,614), was discovered. A 46-year-old man was arrested in connection with the seizure and later charged with the importation of controlled drugs.