€350k of head shop drugs point to ‘lucrative trade’

Drug experts have said the seizure of 10kg of head shop drugs indicates a “lucrative trade” of the former legal highs on the black market.

A major operation by the Garda National Drug Unit and the Dublin North Central division resulted in the haul of MEC (methylethcathinone).

This is by far the largest consignment of head shop drugs intercepted since their sale was banned in 2010.

Gardaí have estimated the haul of the synthetic drugs has a final street value of about €350,000 or €35,000 a kilogramme. Considering that MEC can be bought online from Asian manufacturers for between €1,300 and €1,600 a kilogramme, the potential profit is significant, even before the powder is diluted.

Gardaí conducted several searches in Dublin on Wednesday. The haul was found during the course of a search at Slaney House on Gill St, in Dublin’s north inner city.

A man, aged 44, and a woman, aged 42, were arrested at the scene. The operation was the work of the GNDU and the North Central Drugs Unit and the Northern Divisional Task Force.