One of UK's most wanted men Alex Male arrested at airport

Alex Male now faces extradition back to the UK

One of the UK's most wanted men has been arrested after trying to fly using a fraudulent passport.

Alex Male, of Weston-super-Mare in Somerset, is alleged to have been a distributor of class A drugs across the south west of England.

The 29-year-old was detained at Lisbon Airport on Saturday after arriving on a flight from Turkey.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said his arrest was a "fantastic result".

Mr Male, who is alleged to have sold drugs using an encrypted communications network, had been refused entry to Turkey, the NCA said.

International liaison officer Phil Robinson said: "Male naively believed he could travel across international borders using fraudulent documentation and remain undetected by law enforcement.

"But he underestimated the vigilance and expertise of the Turkish border police, which enabled the Portuguese authorities to act.

"Any arrest of a fugitive is a fantastic result, even more so since Male had only recently been added to our most wanted list.

"He is wanted in connection with dangerous crimes, which have a devastating impact on communities, so I'm delighted he has been caught."

'Nowhere to hide'

Male is accused of conspiracy to supply cocaine and ketamine, money laundering and conspiracy to acquire a firearm as part of his drug-dealing activity between April and June 2020.

The NCA said he had been on the run after failing to follow to the bail restrictions imposed following his arrest, having previously been on the run in the Marbella area of Spain before moving to Portugal.

Male remains in custody and will now face extradition proceedings.

Detective Inspector Adrian Hawkins of the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SW ROCU) said the arrest showed there was "nowhere safe to hide".