Newtownabbey: Nine men charged after hatchets and machetes found in vans

Nine men have been charged after police recovered a number of weapons including hatchets and machetes from vans in Newtownabbey.

Officers were responding to reports of suspicious transit vans on Saturday morning.

One of the vans was stopped near Swanston Road North and the other in the Antrim Road at about 10:50 GMT.

The nine men in the vans, aged between 18 and 41, were arrested and have since been charged with a number of offences.

The offences include possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.

They are due to appear in court on Monday 30 January.