Five people have been arrested as part of a major investigation into fake pound coins worth more than £1.2 million.

About 90 officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) raided six addresses across Sussex.

Four men and a woman, accused of importing the currency made in the Netherlands and intended for distribution in the UK were arrested in raids across Brighton and Hove and Mid Sussex on Tuesday.

A 42-year-old woman and a 37-year old-man were arrested at two separate residential addresses in Brighton.

A 67-year-old man was arrested at a residential address in Hurstpierpoint.

A 56-year-old man was arrested at a business premises in Burgess Hill and a 64-year-old man was arrested at a residential address in Burgess Hill.

Officers also seized computer equipment and paperwork during the searches.

A spokesman for the NCA said: “On the morning of Tuesday, January 27, around 90 officers from the National Crime Agency executed warrants at six locations in the Sussex area.

“They arrested four men and a woman at five different addresses on suspicion of importation, money laundering and offences under the Forgery Act.

“Searches were also carried out at a business premises in the Burgess Hill area.

“Accompanying NCA investigators were officers from the Dutch fraud investigation service FIOD and an expert from the Royal Mint.”

NCA senior investigating officer Steve McIntyre said: “These arrests and searches were the latest phase of an ongoing international investigation looking into the supply of fake currency from the Netherlands to the UK.

“This investigation follows the closure of a Dutch mint suspected of manufacturing counterfeit coins in 2013.

“This element of the inquiry is focused on the alleged importation and laundering of coins worth around £1.2 million.

“We will continue to work closely with our colleagues in the Netherlands and the Royal Mint.”

The five arrested have now been bailed pending further enquiries until July 2015.