Harwich: Lorry drivers jailed over heroin find 'worth £3.2m'

Stanislaw Walczak and Robert Wyzuj denied any knowledge of the heroin, but traces of their DNA was found on the bag containing it

Two lorry drivers have been jailed after 32kg of heroin believed to be worth £3.2m was found at a UK port.

Stanislaw Walczak, 43, and Robert Wyzuj, 55, were stopped in their HGV at Harwich ferry terminal in Essex after arriving from the Netherlands in February 2020.

They denied the importation of Class A drugs, but were convicted following a trial at Chelmsford Crown Court.

Walczak has been sentenced to 14 years and Wyzuj to 13 years.

The bag containing the heroin was wedged among plastics bound for Leicester

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said 64 blocks of heroin were found in a bag among a legitimate load of plastics destined for Leicester.

It added that the drugs would have had an estimated street value of £3.2m if cut and sold in the UK.

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Officers also recovered a canister containing pepper spray and a mobile phone which was later found to connect the pair to criminal associates in the Netherlands.

Both men, who are Polish nationals, denied any involvement, but DNA evidence linked them to the handles of the bag in which the drugs were concealed, the NCA added.

Wyzuj was also convicted by the jury of possession of a prohibited weapon, but this was not included in his sentence.

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