A 40 year old man has been charged over a police probe into East Belfast UVF drugs and criminality racket.

He has been charged with with possession of a Class A controlled drug, possession of a Class A controlled drug with intent to supply, possession of a Class B controlled drug, possession of a Class C controlled drug and firearms licencing offences.

He is due to appear at Newtownards Magistrates’ Court via videolink on Thursday, July 16.

As is normal procedure, all charges are reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.

The charges are in relation to a number of searches carried out in the Dundonald area by detectives from the Paramilitary Crime Task Force (PCTF) investigating suspected drug criminality linked to east Belfast UVF on Friday, June 19.