Two drug dealers found with thousands of pounds of cash in a shoebox have been jailed.

James Hammacott and Sam Marshall were in a Mercedes van which police suspected was linked to drug dealing on February 1 this year.

It was stopped as it was driven along the A299 Thanet Way near St Nicholas-at-Wade and officers searched the vehicle.

Inside were two packages of cocaine, each weighing more than a kilo, and a shoebox containing more than £25,000 in cash.

Both men were arrested and later charged by detectives from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate.

They each later admitted possession of class A drugs with intent to supply and possession of criminal property.

Marshall, 32, of Almodington, West Sussex, was jailed for six years and one month at Canterbury Crown Court yesterday (Thursday).

Hammacott, 22, of no fixed abode, was given a five-year, nine-month sentence at the same hearing.

Det Sgt Jon Saxby from Kent Police's Serious Crime Directorate said after the hearing: “Kent Police will not tolerate criminals coming into the county to deal drugs which lead to further crime and anti-social behaviour.

“The quick stop of this vehicle, the subsequent charges and jail terms now imposed are all part of our ongoing work to bring drug dealers to justice and take class A drugs off the streets of Kent.”