Customs raid Co Louth diesel-laundering plant

Customs officers in Co Louth have raided an illegal diesel-laundering plant in the Kilcurry area north of Dundalk.

The pre-dawn raid followed a lengthy surveillance operation on the plant in Raskeagh, which is close to the south Armagh border.

Customs said the illegal facility was completely automated and self-sufficient, operated 24 hours a day and is the only facility of its type ever detected in western Europe.

It had the capacity to wash 150,000 litres of green and red diesel every day and represented a potential loss to the Exchequer of around €4m to €5m per annum.

One hundred thousand litres of diesel was seized in this morning's raid along with all the equipment in the plant.

Nobody was arrested.