The £520,000 herbal cannabis haul seized by police last night on the M2 city bound

DETECTIVES have seized drugs with a street value of over half a million pounds during a covert operation on the northern outskirts of Belfast.

Officers in two unmarked Audi estate cars stopped a lorry being driven city bound on the M2 shortly before 11 pm last night in the intelligence-led operation.

The 40ft articulated lorry was pulled into the hard shoulder with one police car at the front of the truck and another blocking it in at the rear.

Inside the lorry officers found £520,000 worth of herbal cannabis concealed inside a number of holdalls.

A 39-year-old man was arrested under the 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act for possession of the drugs and having them with intent to supply.

Detective Inspector Keith Gawley of the PSNI’s Reactive and Organised Crime Branch said: “This seizure highlights our continued determination to tackle the scourge of illegal drugs in the local community.

“We will look into any report that we receive as we work with the community to reduce the harm caused by illegal drugs,” he said.

The half a million pound herbal cannabis haul was concealed inside holdalls