A lorry driver was yesterday jailed for seven years after trying to sneak £650,000 of cocaine into the UK hidden in the battery space of his HGV.
Romans Gzibovskis was 38 and travelled with the truck from Latvia.
The power cells were left empty so that Class A drugs could be stored.
After having traveled from Kastire, Latvia on August 24, he was stopped by Dover’s Eastern Docks at Kent.
Romans Gzibovskis 38 (pictured) traveled to the UK via Latvia with the lorry. There, he removed the huge HGV battery and installed smaller batteries for cars.
Border Force officers looked at the vehicle, carrying empty pallets. One of them noticed something odd in its external battery compartment.
Searches of the lorry found 16 kilos of cocaine and experts from the National Crime Agency estimated it would have been worth around £650,000 on the street.
Gzibovskis pleaded guilty at Canterbury Crown Court to one charge of involvement in the importation and use of controlled drugs.
Yesterday, he was sentenced to seven years in prison by the same court.
Border Force officers scanned the truck (pictured) which was transporting empty pallets and discovered something unusual in its external battery compartment.
Mark Howes is the NCA branch commander. He stated that today, “Gzibovskis evidently believed this concealment method will leave his lethal cargo unscathed.” It did not.
“It has not only deprived organized criminals of their profit but also prevented the illegal import of class A drugs to our streets. They fuel violence and exploit vulnerable people.
“Working with Border Force, I will continue to fight illegal drugs that pose such a danger for the public.”
Searches of the lorry (pictured) found 16 kilos of cocaine and experts from the National Crime Agency estimated it would have been worth around £650,000 on the street