A lorry driver who previously tried to smuggle people into the UK has now been jailed for his work in a £1m drugs operation.

Serhii Tukalo became the subject of a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation after Border Force stopped his lorry at Dover’s freight terminal in May.

The 39-year-old, from Smila, Ukraine, was arrested on suspicion of importing Class A drugs.

An x-ray of the lorry showed anomalies in the load - which was air compressors and pressure washers from factories in Northern Italy.

After a closer inspection, officers found 20 kilo blocks of high purity cocaine wrapped and hidden in boxes holding equipment. If sold in the UK, the drugs would have been worth in the region of £1 million.

At the time, Tukalo said he did not know how the drugs got in his lorry.

Several other items were seized, including two phones and a sim card holder with a sticky note attached giving details of a UK phone number.

Paperwork found also showed Tukalo had been convicted in France in 2021 for attempting to smuggle two Albanian migrants into the UK in the cab of his lorry.

Forensic experts downloaded his phone data and found images of UK and Ukrainian bank notes.

The NCA argued the exchange relates to a known system between drug and cash couriers where each recipient would be able to present the exact note in person to prove their identity.

The extra sim card belonged to Tukalo but was registered in a different name.

He claimed to use the card to contact family and watch YouTube, which was discounted when data showed only two numbers had ever contacted the sim and it had never been online.

He was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court this month to 11 years in prison, after the jury took two hours to find him guilty.

Derek Evans, NCA operations manager said: “Tukalo saw an opportunity to exploit his professional services as a haulier to import a significant quantity of Class A drugs into the UK and avoid detection.

“However through effective processes at our borders, his vehicle was identified. His defence was dismissed by the jury within a short time frame, such was the evidence presented to the court.

"This sentence should serve as a deterrent to others who may seek to exploit our borders who may face the same fate.”