Auto123.com - Helping you drive happy

F1: Drug find in trucks to put heat on motorsport teams' transporters

|
Obtain the best financial rate for your car loan at Automobile En DirectTecnic
Khatir Soltani
From GMM

Motor sport transporters are facing the prospect of more police checks following an incident in Great Britain last month.

The Telegraph reports that huge amounts of drugs and a gun was found in trucks belonging to Paul Bird Motorsport, based in Morecambe, Lancashire – the company which runs the Kawasaki team in the Superbike World Championship – travelling by road and ferry from Italy.

A UK Border Agency spokesman said: "Two lorries were searched by UK Border Agency officers as they passed through Dover Eastern Docks. Quantities of Class A drugs, Class B drugs and a handgun were discovered.”

"Four men, aged 50, 40, 32 and 27 were arrested on suspicion of the importation of controlled drugs and firearm offences. They were questioned and later released on bail pending further enquiries," the spokesman added.

A source at the UK Border Agency said: "Our intelligence analysts will be looking much more closely at motor sport vehicles from now on, including Superbikes and even formula one.

"They have been pulled over very rarely and that will now change," added the source.

Khatir Soltani
Khatir Soltani
Automotive expert
  • Over 8 years experience as a car reviewer
  • Over 50 test drives in the last year
  • Involved in discussions with virtually every auto manufacturer in Canada