Published: Wednesday, 4th November, 2009 9:00am

Cocaine crescent

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A QUIET cul-de-sac was home to a cocaine factory processing hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of the class A drug.

Neighbours this week told of their shock at the illegal activity happening on their doorstep.

The two men at the centre of the operation - Scott Lewis, 46, and Malcolm Brand, 30 - were caught by police after being trailed from a drug hand-over in a pub car park in Milton to Allan Crescent, Alexandria.

Lewis, 46, of Stirling Street, Renton, and Malcolm Brand, 30, of Allan Crescent, were discovered by police investigating drug dealing throughout the west of Scotland.

The bust took nearly £500,000 worth of drugs off the streets but it is not clear how long the operation had been running.

When the Renault Laguna the pair were in was searched drug officers found cocaine with a potential street value of £280,000.

After further probing, a 125 ton hydraulic press for compressing cocaine, as well mixing bowls which contained traces of the drug were discovered in Brand's deceased brother's home at 11 Allan Crescent.

Bags of Benzocaine - a chemical used to dilute the drug - and food mixers were also found.