Heroin worth £8.5m found hidden in fruit and nut boxes at Heathrow Airport

More than 170kg of heroin has been found at Heathrow Airport in the latest major seizure during the coronavirus pandemic.

Packets of the drug, which has a potential street value of £8.5m, were hidden in a freight consignment containing more than 600 commercial boxes of fruit and nuts.

Border Force officers made the discovery on Thursday, finding envelopes of heroin concealed in the walls of cardboard boxes.

Three men have been arrested in Bradford on Birmingham and a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation continues.

Minister Chris Philp said it was the largest class A drugs detection so far this year at Heathrow.

“Illegal drugs fuel crime, violence and exploitation which is why our work to prevent them reaching our communities is so vital,” he added.

NCA branch commander Mark Spoors said: “This significant amount of heroin would have ended up on the streets of the UK and ultimately lined the pockets of the criminals involved in drug supply.

“Despite the restrictions in place, we are continuing to work closely with our partners at Border Force to keep the public safe and to fight the supply of illegal drugs; dismantling crime groups and cutting off their profits.”

Officials say travel restrictions and international lockdowns have made it harder for criminal groups to move drugs, guns and money, forcing them to take bigger risks.

At the same time, police have been left with extra capacity because of a drop in overall crime and are running a large number of proactive operations.

Police in London announced the discovery of £1m in suspected criminal cash, amid a nationwide crackdown on gangs.

Specialist officers from the Metropolitan Police’s Scorpion branch, who target moped criminals, initially stopped a suspect in Muswell Hill on Tuesday evening.

He was found to be carrying £12,000 in cash, but when they searched the man’s home in Haringey they found £1m in cash stored in shoe boxes and plastic bags, as well as several passports.

Detective Chief Inspector Shaun White said: “There is no justifiable reason for this much cash not be kept in a bank account, unless it has been sourced from ill-gotten activities involving criminality.”

The man was arrested under the Proceeds of Crime Act and remains in custody.

In Tower Hamlets, 17 people were arrested on Wednesday as part of a separate operation against drug dealers.

Officers found another £20,000 in cash and what are believed to be Class A drugs and cannabis.

Detective Inspector Sean Lyons said: “Even during the Covid public health crisis, criminals seem to think that they can continue to peddle drugs in our communities and get away with it.”

Last week, the director-general of the NCA said restrictions had “made criminal groups take additional risks” while moving cash and drugs.

“It has become harder for criminals to conceal the proceeds of their crimes,” Lynne Owens told a remote press conference.

“This appears to have resulted in criminals moving larger quantities in one go rather than smaller, and more frequent amounts.”

She said that during the lockdown period since March, at least £15m of cash believed to be the proceeds of crime had been seized across the UK.

Other criminal assets were also discovered during the raids, at properties and on lorries and shipping consignments at ports.

Ms Owens said several tonnes of drugs, including cocaine and heroin, had been seized “before they can create harms to our communities in the UK”.

There has also been an increase in firearm seizures, with 39 guns including an AK-47 and Scorpion semi-automatics recovered in eight weeks.

Martin Hewitt, chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said the crisis had unexpectedly given officers “extra capacity” by reducing normal crime levels.

“As we’re able to focus more attention and resource on our intelligence sources, we with colleagues from the NCA have been successful in executing warrants around the country, clamping down on gangs, serious and organised criminality, the drugs trade and prioritising violence reduction,” he added.

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