Man arrested as gardaí seize drugs worth €1.3m

GARDAÍ believe they’ve dealt a major blow to a drug-trafficking network in Limerick following the seizure of drugs worth an estimated €1.3 million.

Detectives seized around €1m worth of cocaine and cannabis with a value of €300,000 following a raid on a house in the south side of the city last Friday.

One man, a 34-year-old from Limerick, was arrested and detained under the Drug Trafficking Act, which allows him to be held for up to seven days.

“This will have a huge impact on them and seriously disrupt their operations,” said one garda.

The gang is led by a major criminal based on the south-side. He is not thought to be involved in either side of the Keane-Ryan feud in Limerick.

Gardaí from the Limerick Drugs Unit have been targeting his operation for some time. The seizures and arrest resulted from a surveillance operation on his gang.

Gardaí would not comment yesterday on the status of the man detained, refusing to comment on whether he was a minor courier or was farther up the gang’s hierarchy.

The drug unit carried out a series of follow-up searches on Saturday and Sunday.

The weekend haul is thought to include around 10kgs of cocaine and up to 39kgs of cannabis.

Gardaí in the city have noted a sharp rise in the trafficking of cocaine in the city and the availability of the drug on the street.