Suspected ringleader of €440m drugs plot arrested in London

One of the suspected ringleaders of a botched multimillion-pound cocaine smuggling plot has been arrested after being extradited from Spain.

The 45-year-old man was arrested in London over one of the largest ever drugs seizures in Ireland – 62 bales weighing more than 3,300lb (1,500kg) and with an estimated street value of up to €440m, which were discovered at Dunlough Bay in Co Cork.

The suspect had earlier arrived on a flight from Madrid on the back of a European Arrest Warrant.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police in London confirmed the arrest.

The suspect, believed to be number one in the smuggling gang on the ground in Ireland, is being held at a south London police station on conspiracy of attempting to supply Class A drugs.

It is understood he can be held for up to 36 hours.