Police have uncovered a massive haul of drugs worth an estimated £25 million, including dozens of bags of white powder stuffed inside a freezer.
An estimated 150kg of what is believed to be mephedrone and amphetamine were found hidden a flat in Liverpool by specialist organised crime officers on Friday.
The Titan organised crime unit were led to the flat after Merseyside Police made another discovery of drugs during a routine patrol.
Officers had followed a suspicious-looking car to a tyre fitting centre at an industrial unit in Huyton, where they seized 24,000 ecstasy tablets, 4kg of amphetamine and an estimated 1kg of cocaine, with some of the haul hidden within a tyre.
Detective Superintendent Jason Hudson, head of operations at Titan, said: "This is a massive seizure of what is estimated to be more than 160kg kilos of what we believe are Class A and B drugs - we think we could be looking at drugs with a total street value of £25 million.
"This clearly represents a massive seizure of dangerous drugs that would undoubtedly have been supplied to communities across the North West and beyond and I am delighted that we have been able to recover them and take them out of the hands of criminals.
"We continue to target those involved in the top echelons of criminality in the North West and this success follows on from many previous successes.
"Today's operation was a fast-moving and fluid situation and Titan detectives worked closely with colleagues within Merseyside Police to ensure that suspects were quickly arrested and all the available evidence was secured."
Five men aged between 22 and 44 have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply Class A and B drugs, Merseyside Police said.
Additional reporting by the Press Association.
