A drug factory capable of churning out 180,000 dangerous illegal pills every hour has been shut down.
Police seized equipment used to make etizolam - better known as street valium - on a massive scale at an industrial unit in a Lanarkshire village.
The site is reported to be the biggest of it's kind in Scotland, and the operation has been hailed "outstanding" by senior cops, the Sunday Mail reports.
The drama unfolded at Springfield Park, Salsburgh when a crime team armed with warrants descended on the unit as a result of "intelligence development work".
A report to North Lanarkshire council explained: "The location housed a commercial site being used for the large scale production of specifically etizolam.
"The location was subjected to a prolonged forensic examination in an effort to secure evidence.
"It was capable of producing 180,000 tablets per hour. This has been the most significant recovery of its kind in Scotland."
Street valium was involved in the vast majority of Scotland's record-breaking 1,339 drug deaths in 2020.
Police also seized 1kg of cocaine during the operation. Locals were stunned at the scale of the operation.
One resident said: "I noticed police activity and thought the building must be a crime scene. It seemed to be top secret."
A worker in the industrial estate said: "These pills kill many people. If the police have managed to stop production that's good news."
Police said no arrests had been made and inquiries were ongoing.
