DRUGS AND GUNS FOUND IN CUSTOMS SWOOP ON LORRY

A huge drugs and arms cache was discovered yesterday stowed in a lorry
during a spot check at Dover docks, British customs investigators said.

The haul was hidden inside a crane arm being brought into Britain from
Belgium and included amphetamines and ecstasy worth pounds 2m, 25 guns and
300 rounds of ammunition, according to the Customs' National Investigation
Service.

The guns were 24 pistols and a sub-machine gun.

The find follows warnings that criminal gangs are creating stockpiles of
rave drugs ready for a lucrative blitz on the millennium party scene.

Customs have seized more than 325 kilograms of ecstasy since October this
year compared with 250kgs for the whole of last year amid a worldwide boom
for synthetic drugs.

SUCCESS

The 135kgs of amphetamines seized today marks a major success for customs as
only 600kgs have been recovered in the rest of the year.

The amphetamines and 15kgs of ecstasy were found in an ``intuitive'' search
of the lorry as it came off the ferry carrying two crane arms.

When one of the arms was turned over, the illegal goods were found stuffed
inside.

The driver, a 46-year-old from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, was being
questioned by customs officers at Dover.

A customs spokesman said: ``When you're talking about this quantity of drugs
combined with firearms you're talking about organised crime of some
description.''