38m contraband cigarettes worth €15m seized at port

More than 38m contraband cigarettes worth almost €15m have been seized by Customs officials.

The haul — the largest in Europe so far this year — was discovered in four 40ft maritime containers imported into Dublin Port.

A premises was searched after legal documentation linked the consignment with an Irish-based firm. No arrests have been made.

Revenue commissioner Liam Irwin said the seizure was a significant blow to thecriminals involved.

“Tobacco smuggling is organised fraud on a global scale — it brings criminality into our communities and robs millions of euro from the State each year.”

The Golden Eagle brand cigarettes, which originated in Vietnam, arrived inIreland via Rotterdam specifically for the black market. Revenue officials believe that the haul had a potential loss to the exchequer of €13.1m.

The cargo was described on the manifest as “wood briquettes” and was consigned to an Irish-based company.

About 9.5m cigarettes were seized from each of the four containers, which travelled on one Bill of Lading — a legal document detailing ownership of the goods.

The containers were selected for X-ray scan based on risk profiling by Customs officers, with scans showing an anomaly in the contents. Further inspection found boxes of wood pellets being used to cover the load.

It is the third largest seizure in Ireland — after 120m cigarettes were found in 2009 and 70m in 2001.

A Customs spokeswoman said several individuals were interviewed and a premiseswas searched under warrant.

“Documents seized as part of the investigation are currently being examined,”she said. “Investigations are ongoing nationally and internationally.”

Retailers Against Smuggling said the massive seizure highlights the scale of the smuggling problem.

Spokesman Benny Gilsenan commended Revenue for their vigilance, but demanded action from the Government to tackle the issue of tobacco smuggling.