A lorry driver who tried to smuggle Class A drugs worth £160,000 into the UK has been jailed.
Grzegorz Waclaw Lasota, 47, was on his way to Manchester with two kilos of cocaine when he was stopped at Dover’s Eastern Docks in January.
Border Force officers searched Lasota’s cab and discovered cocaine concealed within two brown boxes in an overhead locker.
The drugs would have been worth around £160,000 if sold on the streets of the UK, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said.
Officers also found more than 10,000 euros in cash in a compartment by the driver’s seat.
Lasota picked up a delivery of hazardous goods, including aerosol cans, in the Netherlands and was on route to Manchester when he was intercepted, NCA investigators found.
Lasota, from Poland, pleaded guilty to importing Class A drugs.
He was sentenced to five years in prison at Canterbury Crown Court last week (February 25).
NCA Dover Branch Commander, Martin Grace, said officers will continue to disrupt and intercept drugs.
“Crime groups involved in drug trafficking rely on individuals like Lasota to move Class A drugs across international borders,” he said.
“Cocaine remains a driver of violence and exploitation, and its removal prevents distribution within the criminal market.”
“Our work with Border Force ensures that we continue to disrupt and intercept these drugs from successfully reaching our streets.”
