Five arrests in operation against SE Antrim UDA

More than 80 officers took part in searches in the Carrickfergus area

Five men have been arrested as part of a major anti-drug supply operation in Carrickfergus.

The operation, led by the Paramilitary Crime Task Force, involved more than 80 officers and six warrants.

The men, aged 33, 38, 39, 40 and 43, have been arrested on suspicion of conspiring to supply Class A drugs.

It is part of a long-running operation into the alleged organised crime activities of the South East Antrim UDA.

Officers from the task force, which is made up of members of the National Crime Agency (NCA) and PSNI, are questioning the men at Musgrave Police Station.

The National Crime Task Force says the operation is "hugely significant"

The arrests relate to the seizure of more than one kilogram of cocaine found in two parked cars and nearby land in the Greenisland area in November 2020.

NCA deputy director of investigations, Craig Naylor, said the operation was "hugely significant" and would have "substantially disrupted" the activities of the South East Antrim UDA.

"The South East Antrim UDA have long known to be involved in many forms of organised criminality, doing untold damage to the community and exerting fear in neighbourhoods," he said.

Det Ch Supt John McVea (left) said Tuesday's operation was a "significant milestone"

Det Ch Supt John McVea, the PSNI's head of criminal investigations branch, said drugs cause "nothing but destruction and distress".

The Paramilitary Crime Task Force had "resilience and determination to target, disrupt and frustrate those who continue to do the greatest harm to the people living in our communities", he added.