Lorry driver jailed for smuggling £5m of cocaine in frozen pizzas

Vladan Petrovic legitimately picked up his frozen pizzas in Italy but the cocaine haul was planted later

A lorry driver has been jailed after smuggling cocaine worth £5m into the UK hidden in frozen pizzas.

Vladan Petrovic was arrested at a warehouse in March in Heywood, Greater Manchester.

Police said he drove from Italy via Dover with his 50kg (110lb) cocaine haul to be distributed by gangs.

The 40-year-old Serbian was jailed for 14 years at Manchester Crown Court after being convicted of importation and possession with intent to supply.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said his refrigerated HGV trailer was legitimately loaded with a shipment of frozen pizzas in Italy.

The cocaine was then later loaded into his lorry at an unknown location.

GMP said 50 individual 1kg (2.2lb) blocks of cocaine were discovered when warehouse workers at Lineage Logistics in Heywood became suspicious when they unloaded the pizzas.

The cocaine was hidden in a load of frozen pizzas

Officers the arrested the Serbian at the warehouse.

Det Con Marshall Trower said: "Petrovic's greed has outweighed the obvious risks of importing cocaine into the UK.

"He went to great lengths to try and secrete this illicit haul within his HGV, piggy-backing a legitimate load of perishable goods to try and hasten and circumvent checks at the UK border."