Two charged in €1m heroin haul after Dutch tip-off
It emerged yesterday that 5kg of heroin were seized by members of the Garda National Drugs Unit after a car was stopped at the M50 toll plaza on Thursday evening.
The two men, in their late 20s, were arrested at the scene. In a follow-up operation a 47-year-old man was arrested in Newbridge, Co Kildare.
It is believed gardaí acted after receiving a tip-off from police in Holland. Garda investigations are ongoing following the arrests.
The two men were charged under section 3 and 15 of the Misuse of Drugs Act. They are due to appear in Bridewell Court at 10.30am today.
Meanwhile, a young West African woman was being questioned after gardaí and customs officers seized almost 3kg of cocaine hidden inside Pot Noodle tubs.
The drugs were seized during a raid on a house in the Bryanstown Manor area of Drogheda yesterday. It was a planned operation by the local drugs squad and customs.
Customs officers were alerted after a package thought to contain drugs was identified among postal parcels in Dublin Airport.
With the aid of drugs squad officers, they followed the package to its destination in Drogheda and a search of a house was ordered.
A 28-year-old woman from West Africa was arrested and is being questioned at Donnybrook Garda Station, Dublin.
Gardaí said the 2.75kg of drugs could have a street value of €200,000.
It is understood the cocaine was hidden in small parcels inside a crate of Pot Noodles snacks.
The investigation involved profiling of freight and post into Ireland from West Africa as drugs-squad officers attempt to stifle smuggling by foreign gangs.
The seizure comes two days after a massive haul of cannabis was recovered in Dublin Port. More than a ton of herbal cannabis worth €130m was found hidden in granite stands shipped from South Africa.
