Cocaine worth around £3million has been seized and four people arrested following a huge drugs bust in Rainham last night.

The men, aged between 25 and 37, were detained during a pre-planned operation carried out by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Met officers, in New Road, at around 8.30pm yesterday.

Around 18 kilos of high-purity cocaine was recovered from a Slovenian-registered articulated lorry parked in a lay-by.

The HGV had entered the UK via Dover earlier in the day and had been put under surveillance by officers from the Middle Market Drugs Partnership.

During co-ordinated raids in Slovenia, police also made 12 arrests as part of the same investigation.

NCA Branch Commander, Simon Jennings, said: “These arrests were the culmination of excellent co-operation with law enforcement partners across Europe. The operation has prevented a significant quantity of drugs from reaching the streets.

“We are determined to tackle the organised criminals responsible for trafficking drugs into the UK and causing terrible damage to our communities.

“The men arrested are now being questioned and our investigation continues.”

The Middle Market Drugs Partnership aims to disrupt drug dealing which impacts on the communities of London.

The NCA is a new law enforcement agency that has been tasked with leading the UK’s fight to cut serious and organised crime.