Five men charged after £34m cocaine bust in East Sussex (original) (raw)

Five men have been charged after an estimated 425kg (936 lbs) of cocaine was seized in East Sussex.

Alan Colquhoun, 49, Jacob Cronin, 31, William Donohoe, 38, Daniel Ruffell, 35, and Ian Smith, 49, were all charged with conspiring to fraudulently evade a prohibition on the importation of a class A drug.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said it found £34 million worth of cocaine at Eastbourne's Sovereign Harbour on Monday in what it called a "sea-smuggling attempt".

The drugs were brought in on a New Horizon fishing vessel following collection in the English Channel, it added.

A large number of officers were seen boarding a boat in the marina on Monday.