Irishman arrested over €30m cannabis haul

AN Irishman has been accused of attempting to smuggle cannabis worth tens of millions of euro hidden in a tanker full of sand which was stopped on the French border.

The man, aged about 50, and believed to be from Westmeath, is alleged to have driven the four tonnes of cannabis from Alicante in Spain, a favourite haunt of Irish fugitives. While French police valued the load at €6.5 million, the value on Irish streets would be closer to €30m.

The man is in custody in Marseilles, where he is expected to appear in court within the next couple of weeks. He has not been named by French authorities.

A magistrate charged with investigating organised and international crime will build the case against the accused, sources in France said.

The man is likely to be charged with drugs trafficking offences and faces up to 10 years in jail if convicted.

The man was arrested on Monday after the lorry was stopped by customs officers at Perthus, on the Franco-Spanish border.

Officers became suspicious because the man was travelling during a holiday period in a lorry designed to carry non-perishable goods, particularly grain.

“He gave up on the festivities of the beginning of the year for a load that did not seem urgent,” a local source said.

The suspicions were raised further when officers spotted three mobile phones in the cab and noticed that the man attempted to hide papers. When the officers opened the hatches at the top of the lorry, they found sand and wondered why someone would want to import that material into Ireland.

Under the sand, there were 238 bags of cannabis resin, believed to have been smuggled from North Africa and into Spain.

Gardaí have been told about the seizure and are investigating links with Irish criminals in Alicante.

The arrested man is understood to have no criminal record and was described as foolish rather than a big-time operator. He told French police that he only recently set up his own trucking company. Hauliers here have not yet established his identity.

It is thought the cannabis was destined for both the English and Irish markets.

The man has denied he knew there were drugs in the tanker. He thought there might be cigarettes in the tanker.

This week’s seizure is the third in recent weeks on the border near Perpignan. Fifteen tonnes of cannabis have been discovered.