THOUSANDS of bottles of vodka hidden amongst a cargo of cabbages were discovered by customs officers at Poole port.
Officers found 14,112 litres of spirits with a duty value of almost £122,000 when they searched a refrigerated lorry disembarking from Brittany Ferries' Coutance yesterday morning.
The Portuguese-registered lorry's documents stated it was carrying a cargo of cabbages but the search revealed that 22 of the 26 pallets on board actually contained bottles of vodka.
The 42-year-old Portuguese lorry driver was arrested and interviewed by customs staff. He has now been told to report back to Poole police station in eight weeks' time.
Customs spokesperson Bob Gaiger said: "This is yet another excellent detection by the officers at Poole ferry port. It has stopped a large quantity of vodka entering the UK black market."
He added: "We are delighted with this seizure."
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