BBC
South American drug gangs are dropping cocaine in the sea around the UK to be picked up by smaller boats and brought to shore, Border Force has warned.
Tens of millions of pounds worth of drugs are being wrapped in flotation devices equipped with trackers, allowing gang members in Britain to see where they are, officials say.
This sophisticated method of smuggling large quantities of the drug into the UK has become a “significant and persistent threat”, they say.
Last week, a court heard that four British men were arrested after picking up a tonne of cocaine, with a street value of £100m, left near the Isles of Scilly in September. They face lengthy prison sentences.
In an effort to intercept the parcels, Border Force has deployed its cutter units, alongside highly trained sniffer dogs.
BBC News got rare access to this unit, including a dog called Flash who sniffed out a cocaine haul hidden among bananas on a ship inbound from South America in January.
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