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AIR-CON UNITS DRUGS HAUL IS WORTH A COOL £1.5MILLION
10:30 - 29 February 2008
Police are searching for 11 air conditioning units which may have been used to bring heroin into the country.
It comes after they arrested a gang over a £1.5 million drug-smuggling racket.
Police say 19 air conditioning units were used to bring in heroin and 11 are missing - possibly sold for scrap or dumped in Leicestershire.
Although it is unlikely they still contain any drugs, police want them for fingerprinting and gathering evidence.
The 30kg heroin haul was seized by HM Revenue and Customs during a joint operation with Leicestershire police.
Three women and 15 men, from the Leicester, Birmingham and London areas, have been arrested in connection with the investigation. All have been released on police bail while the police investigate.
Detective Inspector David Sandall said: "While we don't believe that the remaining units will still contain drugs, we do believe they are vital evidence in this extremely complex investigation.
"The units, which are generally used in Mediterranean countries for cold stores, could have been dumped or sold for scrap locally.
"There is also the possibility that people are unwittingly storing them. We believe all of them will be in the greater Leicester area."
He urged people to look at the photographs of the air conditioners and call the police if they were storing similar units, seen them dumped anywhere or even been offered them for sale as scrap.
Police and customs officers made the drug bust in July last year at Birmingham International Airport.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Operation Oscillate team on 0116 222 2222, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
