PREVIEW

WORDS BYLINE: Max Chesson
Police footage has captured the moment eagle-eyed cops found £2 million worth of cocaine stashed in Lidl carrier bags on the back of a lorry.
Kent Police officers had been patrolling the A20 near Folkestone on May 21 when they saw a Renault Kangoo van parked in a layby.
The officers discovered a cash counter on the back seat, and, while investigating, spotted a nearby HGV beginning to pull away.
Following the lorry, officers brought it to a stop next to the A20 Cafe in Smeeth, Ashford.
Upon climbing up into the lorry’s trailer, they swiftly located multiple Lidl bags on top of the freight. Inside the bags was almost 50kg of cocaine blocks.
As police called for backup, and with the HGV driver in handcuffs, a second man attempted to flee the scene from the back of the lorry, where he had been hiding.
But police bodycam footage shows how an officer sprinted to apprehend him before he could get away.
He says: “Get down, now. Give me your hands”.
When the man was detained and searched, police found the keys to the Renault Kangoo van in his pocket.
The driver of the HGV, Dzmitry Danilah, a 36-year-old Belarusian national of no fixed address, and the second man, Klodian Marku, a 25-year-old Albanian national of South Lambeth Road, Vauxhall, London, were later charged with being concerned in the importation of cocaine.
At Canterbury Crown Court on Wednesday, Danilah was sentenced to nine years in prison, while Marku was jailed for eight years.
Investigating officer Detective Constable Molly Harrington said: “This is an extremely large seizure and is a result that was based entirely on the keen eye and intuition of our local officers.
“Disrupting such a large number of drugs from entering the market will have a significant impact on those behind this organised crime.
“The removal of dangerous substances will also crucially help prevent harm in our communities.”