Eleven suspects were arrested in a raid on seven houses on Tuesday

They were watching over €500,000 worth of crystal meth and other drugs

Police in Amsterdam have announced that a massive haul of drug cash discovered earlier this week was being guarded by two alligators.

Eleven suspects were appearing before a magistrate today in connection with a discovery of €500,000 worth of crystal meth, several kilos of synthetic drugs, firearms and €300,000 – the bulk of which was being watched over by two alligators.

The nine men and two women, aged from 25 to 55, were arrested in a raid on seven houses on Tuesday, six in Amsterdam and one in nearby Almere.

But what – according to police – was most 'striking' was that most of the cash was hidden in part of a house where visitors could not avoid passing the dangerous animals.

A gang of suspected drug-dealers in Amsterdam gave the task of guarding their loot to unusually ferocious guards: a pair of fully-grown crocodiles

'I have heard of snakes [being used to guard drugs] but not in the 15 years that I have been a spokesman,' said a representative for the Amsterdam police.

'This is very unusual and the first time we were confronted with animals like this. Mostly we can expect fight dogs but never crocodiles – or rather, alligators, as our experts tell us these are. Alligators have a wider mouth, no teeth outside their mouth and are heavier.

'The person that is the owner of the animals has a license to keep them so it is not illegal. If you knew somebody who had these, maybe you would say that is a good place to hide money.'

Police investigations are ongoing, and it is believed that the criminal ring was using accomplices to deliver the drugs to hundreds of addresses, in the Netherlands and in Belgium – although, currently, no further exotic guard beasts have been discovered.

The spokesman added that, just as when anybody in the Netherlands is arrested but has a pet, the police are looking after the guard alligators – carefully.

'If you are arrested and have a dog, we make sure someone feeds it, and this is the same. Normally [alligators] eat one time in so many weeks.'

Although he was unclear about what the beasts would be fed, he was certain that police body parts would not be on the menu.

The suspects, including the owner of the crocodiles, are due to appear before a judge on Friday.