Banana box coke smugglers gave customs officers the slip

Three eastern European men accused of smuggling cocaine worth up to £184m into the UK, hidden in a cargo of bananas, have been remanded in custody.

Gjergji Diko, 30, Bruno Kuci, 28 and Petko Zhutev, 36, were allegedly involved in the attempt to flood the country with 2.3 tonnes of the drug from Columbia.

Border Force Officers seized the cocaine – believed to be one of the largest hauls ever in the UK – at Portsmouth International Port on February 14.

Officers arrested the three men, along with seven others, after 41 pallets containing the cocaine were delivered to an industrial estate in Tottenham, north London, on February 18.

Diko, Kuci and Zhutev appeared at the Old Bailey via prison videolink charged with being concerned with the importation of class A drugs.

They were remanded in custody ahead of a plea and trial preparation hearing on June 18.

Zhutev was assisted by a Bulgarian interpreter while an Albanian helpted the other two during the brief hearing.
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