A MAN has been jailed for nine years after more than £700,000 of cocaine was found in his van.

Jake Layzell, 25, of Newland Street, Witham appeared at Basildon Crown Court today (April 26), having pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply cocaine and possession of cannabis.

On March 4, Layzell was stopped by officers on the A130 at South Woodham Ferrers .

The vehicle was searched under section 23 of the Misuse of Drugs Act and with the use of a specialist detection dog, £2,000 in cash was found in the pocket of Layzell's jacket.

The dog, which is trained to detect cash, firearm and drugs, continued to indicate that something was, or had been kept, in a professionally fitted metal store within the van that appeared to be empty.

The van was taken to Harwich International Port and scanned using specialist X-ray equipment belonging to UK Border Force.

The scan revealed an area concealed behind the metal store, which was being held in place by two large electromagnets.

Six kilograms of cocaine and 35 grams of cannabis bud were found concealed in the compartment.

The cocaine was valued at £720,000.

Further inspection of the van found seven counterfeit £20 notes, five mobile phones two of which are heavily encrypted devices and a document confirming Layzell as the registered owner of the van.

Layzell was arrested, along with a 24-year-old man also in the van at the time and subsequently charged.

The second man remains under investigation.

At today's sentencing, the Judge highlighted that the concealment Layzell had used within his van to hide the ‘importation-level purity’ cocaine was ‘very sophisticated, summing up that this was ‘clearly linked to organised crime’.

He was sentenced to nine years imprisonment plus a further one month for possession of cannabis, which will run concurrently to the nine years.

Detective Inspector Colin Norton, of the Serious and Organised Crime Unit, said: “Our officers are constantly working to target organised crime groups and those individuals involved.

“Layzell was clearly experienced when it came to concealing his criminal activity, but through the hard work and skill of both our officers and police dogs, we were able to uncover his criminality and prevent a substantial amount of cocaine from being sold on."