A BRAZEN dealer who told police where to look for drugs hidden inside his van has been jailed.

Officers found £1m worth of class A drugs inside Charlie Lancaster’s black Renault Master when he was stopped on the A13 near Stanford-le-Hope.

When he got out of the vehicle, he was asked if there was anything in the that officers should be aware of, to which he replied: “Well, look, yeah. There is some stuff in there - under the seat.”

When the vehicle was searched, officers found nine 1kg blocks of cocaine and heroin.

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Drug experts found the blocks in their current state would be valued at least £300,000.

When sold on the street, experts said the drugs would be worth significantly more than £900,000.

Lancaster, 30 and of Woodcroft, in Harlow, was then arrested on suspicion of a number of offences.

He was subsequently questioned on his knowledge of the drugs and where he had picked them up and where they were going.

He told officers he had been paid £100 to transport the items and had no idea what they were.

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Officers did not believe this and put it to him that he knew what he was transporting, and he had been paid £1,000 to do so.

Lancaster was charged with possession with intent to supply cocaine, possession with intent to supply heroin and possession of criminal property.

He admitted the charges at Southend Crown Court on March 24 and was sentenced at the same court on Tuesday.

He was handed a total of six years in jail.

The drugs and cash were seized and have been destroyed.

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Det Serg Leo Fordham, of Essex Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Unit, said: “This was a sizeable seizure of drugs which were undoubtedly destined for the streets of Essex.

“We know all too well the harm that drugs cause, both to those who take them and those involved in the supply of them.

“People such as Lancaster and his associates do not see that; they see preying on vulnerable people as an opportunity to make money and further their own interests.”

He added: “Thankfully, we have been able to seize a significant amount of Class A drugs and they have been destroyed and Lancaster will spend an appropriate amount of time in jail for his part in the operation.”