Customs officials seized a record-breaking quantity of the drug crystal meth during checks in March, the public prosecution department said on Thursday.

In total, 2.3 tonnes of the drug had been hidden in large sacks together with a sandy substance that was polluted with copper and PFAS.

The press statement did not say where the drugs were found but did say it was the biggest haul of crystal meth ever found in the Netherlands.

The shipment originated in Mexico and was destined for a company in Den Hout in Noord-Brabant, where a 55-year-old man was arrested. He has since been released from jail but remains a suspect.

The department said the drugs had a street value of €22.4 million.

The haul has only just been made public because it had been difficult to find a safe way to destroy the drugs, the department said.