A man has appeared in court after a heroin seizure with an estimated street value of £7.5 million at the Port of Harwich.

Border Force officers discovered the 50kgs of heroin following a search of a lorry. The vehicle had arrived at the port on a ferry from the Hook of Holland.

The lorry was pulling a trailer carrying a load of plastics.

A 25 year-old Lithuanian man, Karolis Neverdauskas, has been charged with importing a Class A drug.

He appeared at Colchester Magistrates Court where he entered a not guilty plea and was remanded in custody to appear at Chelmsford Crown Court in February.

Border Force assistant director at Harwich, Charlotte Mann, said: “By making this seizure, worth an estimated £7.5m, Border Force officers have prevented a substantial quantity of dangerous class A drugs from ending up on the streets of the UK and have put a serious dent in the profits of the criminals involved in this type of smuggling.

“Working with our colleagues at the National Crime Agency we are determined to do all we can to stop drug traffickers. Those convicted of drug importation offences face considerable prison sentences.”

Following the seizure on Sunday the investigation has been passed to the National Crime Agency.

Border Force officers are the front line in protecting the country and play a key role in detecting illegal immigration, disrupting serious and organised crime and helping to prevent the threat of terrorism

They use an array of search techniques including sniffer dogs, carbon dioxide detectors, heartbeat monitors and scanners - as well as visual searches - to find well-hidden stowaways, illegal drugs, firearms and tobacco which would otherwise end up causing harm to local people, businesses and communities.

Anyone with information about activity they suspect may be linked to smuggling can call our hotline on 0800 595000.