Two quizzed on £1m drugs haul

[Abrad]

www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk
Two men were being questioned today after the seizure of one of the largest ever hauls of cocaine in Northern Ireland.

The drugs, with an estimated street value of more than £1m, were intercepted at Belfast International Airport yesterday.

The two men, believed to be foreign, were arrested as they were preparing to board a plane to leave Northern Ireland.

The men were taken to the serious crime suite at Antrim for questioning.

Last year during an eight-month period police seized almost 20kg of cocaine here. Seizures of the Class A drug have been rising steadily in the province. In 2002/2003 almost 3kg of cocaine was seized, compared to 11.4kg in 2003/2004 and 21.3kg in 2004/2005.

Bobby McConnell of the eastern drugs and alcohol coordination team said the prevalence and usage of cocaine in Northern Ireland was cause for concern.

And he predicted more seizures of the drug as a result.

"Seizures such as this one are always significant and the police and Customs must be congratulated," he said.

Mr McConnell said that more needed to be done to prevent the growing use of cocaine.