Irishman to face Dutch drugs charges

ONE of the key players in the Irish drugs racket has been arrested in the Netherlands and will face serious charges for drugs and weapons possession in the coming days.

The arrest has been welcomed by Justice Minister Michael McDowell.

The 30-year-old man, believed to be a leader of one of the two Drimnagh gangs whose feud has claimed eight lives, was arrested in Rotterdam on Saturday by Dutch police, who also seized a quantity of drugs and at least one firearm.

A woman, believed to be the man’s girlfriend, and two other people were also arrested.

Mr McDowell said the arrest was an example of the close cooperation between the gardaí and their European counterparts.

He said that the raid was part of an anti-drugs operation by gardaí.

Dutch police last night confirmed that the four Irish people will appear before an examining magistrate on charges of drugs and weapons possession within the coming days.

The Dutch police declined to reveal the names of those arrested.

The arrested man is believed to have been behind last week’s importation of the largest quantity of heroin in the State’s history.

Gardaí seized the €11 million haul last Tuesday, along with drug-mixing equipment, a sub-machine gun and thousands of rounds of ammunition in a raid on an address in Clondalkin, Dublin.

In total 53kg of heroin and 25kg of cannabis were discovered in the Clondalkin raid.

Detective Superintendent PJ Browne said the Dutch raid was linked to Tuesday’s seizure.

“We can confirm that an arrest has taken place in Holland, as a follow-on from investigations based at Kilmainham Garda Station into the recent seizure of heroin in Dublin,” he said.

The gang leader’s girlfriend is believed to have been renting a flat close to where the haul was discovered on Tuesday night.

Since last November, when the Drimnagh gangs’ feud claimed three lives in one week, the arrested man has been spending more time in the Netherlands.

In a separate development, gardaí discovered half a kilo of cocaine after stopping a car in Abbeyleix, Co Laois, shortly before midnight on Friday.

The haul has an estimated street value of €35,000.

Two Tipperary men in their 20s were arrested at the scene and are currently detained at Portlaoise Garda Station.