Cocaine smuggler jailed

The cocaine was hidden in Lensen's shoes

A Dutch man who was caught at Harwich trying to smuggle cocaine into Britain in shoes has been jailed for 10 years.

Ferdinand Lensen, 43, from Amsterdam in Holland, pleaded guilty at Chelmsford Crown Court on Friday to trying to bring 993 grammes of cocaine through the Essex port.

The cocaine, a class A drug, was found in Lensen's shoes by customs officers on 2 October.

Lensen was stopped when he arrived from the Hook of Holland as a foot passenger.

Officers became suspicious of a pair of shoes found when they searched his baggage.

A small hole made in the sole of one shoe revealed the while powder.

Two packages were also found in the shoes he was wearing.

The cocaine had an estimated street value of £59,500.