A group of men have been arrested on suspicion of smuggling after police found thousands of cigarettes and beer and cider cans in an industrial unit.

HMRC officers found 3,500,000 cigarettes and over 150,000 cans of beer and cider worth £90,000 at an industrial unit in Tottenham.

They believe they were hidden in a cargo ship from Poland.

Further searches at a private address led to the seizure of £40,000 in cash.

Five men from north London have been arrested and bailed until November in connection with the case.

Anthony Swarbrick, assistant director at the Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “The criminals behind the illicit trade in alcohol and tobacco effectively steal over £3.2 billion a year from the taxpayer. HMRC is coming down hard on these unlawful and dangerous trades through targeted interventions aimed at the criminals behind them.

“I would encourage anyone with information about the illegal sale of tobacco or alcohol to contact the Customs Hotline on 0800 59 5000.”