Man arrested as fuel laundering plant discovered

One man was arrested today after the discovery of a diesel laundering plant and 60,000 litres of toxic waste in the North.

Revenue & Customs officials said the illegal operation uncovered in the Newtownhamilton area of Co Armagh could produce up to eight million litres of illicit fuel a year.

Fuel laundering involves removing the red dye from agricultural diesel and selling it as ordinary diesel for a profit.

A total of 19,000 litres of laundered fuel, four filtration units and a vehicle were seized in a raid involving customs officers and police. The arrested man has been released on bail.

Revenue and Customs officer Mike Connolly said: "Any fuel laundering is unregulated and dangerous but the volume of waste on this site is staggering. The by-products from the laundering process can cause severe damage to the environment with taxpayers and local ratepayers having to pay for the clean up costs."