Officers from Revenue at Dublin Airport made a significant bust on Friday, confiscating approximately €373,000 worth of herbal cannabis. The illegal drug, weighing around 18.6kg, was discovered concealed within vacuum-sealed parcels found in the luggage of a passenger who had arrived from Thailand. Following the discovery, a man in his 30s was apprehended and officially charged.
Revenue stated that these measures were part of a continued onslaught against multiple organised crime factions, and a crackdown on the importation and illicit distribution of narcotics. The consequences of synthetic cannabis, highlighting its public health risks, have been the subject of warnings from FSI.
The recent apprehension marks another success for Revenue, having intercepted contraband exceeding €7 million over the past two weeks, during several unrelated busts in Dublin, Athlone, and Cork. These included the seizure of 3.42 million cigarettes estimated to hold a value of €2.9 million in Cork port, and the confiscation of 194.5kg herbal cannabis, a haul approaching €3.9 million, at Dublin Port.
According to Revenue, investigative processes and “risk profiling” tools played a key role in these discoveries. Detector dog Rua aided in the identification of the smuggled cigarettes, which were found in an unaccompanied trailer arriving from Zeebrugge, Belgium.