Cigarette haul gang charged

EIGHT men have been charged over the theft of a £1.1m haul of cigarettes from Southamp-ton docks.

A gang used a stolen lorry and trailer to take 300,000 packets of American Legend cigarettes on June 7.

Six men have been charged with conspiracy to steal the cigarettes, and the lorry and trailer.

The gang – James Kelleher, 42, from Maldon, Essex; Stephen Pink, 49, from Colchester, Essex; Mark Juniper, 28, from Ashford, Kent; Kevin Burgess, 51, from Sheerness, Kent; Mark Ball, 51, from Sheerness, Kent; and Andrew Badland, 30, from Dagenham, Essex – have been bailed to appear at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on January 7.

Another two men – Alan Hunt, 50, and Sean Ripley, 40, both from Norwich – have been charged with possession of criminal property. They have been bailed and will appear before magstrates on January 6.