The Broward County Sheriff’s Office in Florida manufactured crack cocaine between 1988 and 1990 and sent its officers onto the streets to sell it — and then arrest their customers.

The practice was found by the Florida Supreme Court in 1993 to be “so outrageous as to violate Florida’s due process clause”.

However, more than three decades later, local officials say they have discovered that up to 2,600 convictions from that three-year period have yet to be formally overturned.

Broward County State Attorney Harold F. Pryor said: “It is never too late to do the right thing.”

“These records may be a dim memory or an unfortunate part of history to many, but they have had a long-lasting and severe impact on the lives of the people who were arrested – as well as their families and the wider community,” he added.

Local prosecutors are now reviewing the records and have said they will make contact with those affected.