FIVE men have been arrested in connection with a police operation that seized £5 million worth of cannabis at Birmingham Airport.

With the help of Bedfordshire Police, the National Crime Agency (NCA) arrested the men, who are aged between 21 and 27, at separate addresses in the Marsh Farm area of Luton and at one address in Finchley in the early house of October 23.

They are accused of attempting to import half a tonne of cannabis into the country in August, which saw 11 passengers who had flown from the UK to Thailand via Paris arrested on August 9.

The passengers have since been bailed pending further enquiries, with the NCA issuing a warning that same month to all travellers arriving into the UK from Thailand, Canada and the USA that they would face jail for smuggling cannabis into the country.

So far this year, the amount of cannabis that has been seized by police across the UK is three times more than the whole of 2023.

NCA Branch Commander Mick Pope said: "The arrests in Luton and London show that we will leave no stone unturned in our hunt for anyone involved in attempts to smuggle cannabis into the UK, regardless of the level they operate at.

"The gangs behind this trade do not care that couriers will likely be arrested and end up in prison – their sole motivation is financial gain.

"Anyone who tries to smuggle drugs into the UK needs to know that they will be identified, arrested and spend time behind bars."  

The five men detained in Luton remain in custody and are being questioned.

Anyone with information about this case, or any incident involving the smuggling of drugs through UK borders, is urged to contact the UK Border Force Customs Hotline on 0800 595 000.