A man who was arrested after cocaine with an estimated street value of £8million was found in a lorry container has been found not guilty.

Lorry driver Vitali Macari, 49, of Iasi, Romania, had been on trial at Ipswich Crown Court.

He had been charged with being concerned in carrying, concealing or dealing cocaine with intent to evade the prohibition on importing the drug in March 2023.

On Tuesday, a jury cleared him of all charges.

Police officers were called to a premises in Iceni Way, Haverhill, last March after a hidden compartment was discovered as a container was being unloaded.

A metal wall fitted into the lorry allegedly hid the packages of cocaine in the trailer.  

The prosecution had argued Macari picked up the drugs at an industrial estate in Roosendaal in the Netherlands, then went on to collect a legitimate load of yoghurt in France before smuggling the drugs into England.

Prosecutor Jane Oldfield, in her closing speech, had tried to dismiss suggestions that Macari had been used as an unknowing pawn in the international drug business of his boss Adrian Albu.

She said that if the drugs were put onto his trailer without him knowing at Roosendaal it would have required Macari to not have noticed it happening during the one hour and 15 minutes he parked there.

She went on and said Macari only told Albu he was arriving 15 minutes before he got there, so this would imply the lightning-fast organization of a furtive drug gang. 

However, David Osborne gave the defence closing speech and reminded the jury Macari is a married family man with three children and a hard worker who has never been in trouble.

Mr Osborne emphasised Macari had sat in the cab of the lorry while the trailer was searched, rather than getting out and trying to prevent anyone prying too far into the yoghurt load.

This, he said, was evidence that either he was an “unusually cool customer” or that he was in fact entirely oblivious to what was then found.

Not only this, but there was no sign of any sudden increase in Macari’s income.

Mr Osborne argued Macari’s truthfulness was borne out by his lack of exaggeration.

When cross-examined, Macari said he only left his lorry in Roosendaal for about 15 minutes looking for other drivers to talk to and in the Danone factory in France he said he only left his lorry to have a shower, then slept in it all night.

Macari could have said he was away from his lorry for a lot longer and the drugs were secretly stashed in the trailer during that interval, but Mr Osborne argued because he had not said this it showed his reliability as a witness.   

He concluded by telling the jury: “If he might not have known the drugs were there, then he is entitled to your acquittal.”