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UK border guard held in France over drugs and gun smuggling

A British border guard was one of 12 people arrested in Britain and France as part of an investigation into arms and drugs smuggling, police said on Monday.

Published: 9 October 2017 17:26 CEST

UK border guard held in France over drugs and gun smuggling

AFP

The 37-year-old officer from the port of Dover was detained by French police near Calais last Friday along with three other UK citizens, Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) said in a statement.

The man was arrested in a supermarket car park in the rural district of Loon-Plage near Dunkerque.

Eleven firearms — nine handguns and two revolvers — were recovered and French police also seized 34 kilogrammes (75 pounds) of cocaine and seven kilos of heroin.

“The British officer, assigned to guard the British border, used his position to pass drugs and arms into Britain in his work vehicle, using the tunnel that passes under the channel,” a source close to the investigation was quoted in Le Point magazine.

“According to initial investigations, these drugs and arms were bought in Belgium and the trafficking has been going on for several months,” the source added.

Eight more people were then arrested in Kent in southeast England and in London, six of whom have been charged with conspiracy to import firearms and drugs.

The remaining two were released on bail pending further investigation.

“This operation has brought together law enforcement from both sides of the Channel, and we believe we have prevented the importation of a significant quantity of class A drugs and firearms to the UK,” said Dave Hucker, head of the NCA's anti-corruption unit.

Coronavirus: Sweden extends travel ban from Denmark

Illustration photo of Copenhagen airport. Photo: Liselotte Sabroe / Ritzau Scanpix

The extension to the travel ban was confirmed at a digital press conference on Sunday January 24th, when the Swedish government announced a new travel ban on entry from Norway. The entry ban from the United Kingdom was also extended until February 14th.

On Saturday January 23rd, the Norwegian government introduced a series of very strict restrictions in Oslo and nine more municipalities due to an outbreak of the more contagious B117 coronavirus variant, first identified in Britain.

The British virus mutation already exists in Sweden. So far, about 50 cases have been confirmed, the vast majority of them are linked to people who have been abroad, according to the Swedish Public Health Agency.

“The ban applies from midnight until February 14th and can be extended if necessary”, Interior Minister Mikael Damberg said at the digital press conference on Sunday afternoon.

READ MORE: COVID UPDATE: Sweden bans travel entry from Norway

In December, the Swedish government announced a ban on travel into Sweden from both the UK and Denmark, due to the new coronavirus variant in the countries. The ban was initially due to last a month.

It was the first time during the pandemic that the Scandinavian country closed the border on one of its neighbours.

Swedish citizens are exempt from the entry ban, as are non-citizens who live or work in Sweden, and people working in the transportation of goods.

The B117 coronavirus variant has previously been estimated to be between 50-74 percent more infectious than established forms of Covid-19.

It is expected to comprise 50 percent of all Covid-19 variants in circulation in Denmark by the middle of February, according to a new report issued by the State Serum Institute (SSI).

It has been traced to have first appeared in Denmark in November, but was reported to have become established in the south east of England in December.

READ ALSO: How could infectious Covid-19 variant impact Denmark's infection numbers?

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