Two men have been jailed for more than five years after they were spotted exchanging a gun and carrying cocaine.

The pair were spotted acting suspiciously in Milton Avenue, Margate, in June last year.

Lee Walker, 35, and Alex Vassallo, 28, were approached by police, who had seen them exchanging a bag.

Walker, from West Cliff Road in Ramsgate, set off down an alley on the evening of Saturday, June 18, but was followed and caught.

Vassallo - from Gladstone Road in Broadstairs - was found inside a car, holding a rucksack into which the bag had been placed.

After a struggle with police he was arrested, and inside the rucksack a 8mm Bruni pistol and cocaine with a street value of up to £20,000 was found.

Walker was also arrested and both men were later charged with possession of a firearm and possession of cocaine with intent to supply.

On February 3, Walker received a five-year, seven-month sentence and Vassallo was jailed for five years and three months after they pleaded guilty to both offences at Canterbury Crown Court.

Detective Inspector Jon Saxby said: "These arrests were an example of our commitment to relentlessly disrupt and tackle the activities of serious criminals.

"I am pleased a weapon which could have been used to threaten or harm people in Kent has been removed from the streets, along with class A drugs whose sale would have benefited a criminal network."