Two men arrested following seizure of 500kg of cannabis herb in Clare

As part of this operation, an arrest team was organised from gardaí in the Clare and Limerick divisions.

More than half a tonne of cannabis herb, worth an estimated €10m on the street, was seized in Co Clare in a “controlled delivery” operation by Revenue and An Garda Síochána.

It is understood Revenue detected the shipment on arrival and contacted gardaí to help set up a controlled delivery to bring the consignment to its intended destination.

As part of this operation, an arrest team was organised from gardaí in the Clare and Limerick divisions.

Once the delivery arrived at the destination, the gardaí swooped onto the property and arrested those present — two men, both aged in their 60s.

The cannabis was still on two pallets at the address when members of the Clare Divisional Drug Unit and Limerick gardaí moved in. It is thought the haul entered via a port along the Mid-West or South coast.

Inquiries are now underway by gardaí and Revenue to gather information about the shipment and the people concerned.

A statement by Garda HQ said: “As part of ongoing investigations by Revenue and the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau targeting drugs distribution networks, gardaí from the Clare Divisional Drugs Unit and Limerick-based garda units carried out an operation at a residential property in Co Clare on Wednesday.” 

A statement issued by Revenue said the seizure was the result of an “intelligence-led operation”, resulting in the seizure of around 500kg of cannabis herb.

Garda HQ said: “During the operation, two pallets containing over 500kg of cannabis herb, valued at more than €10m, were recovered.

“Two men, both in their 60s, were arrested and are currently detained under Section 2 of the Drug Trafficking Act 1996 at garda stations in Clare and Limerick.” 

Controlled delivery

The 500kg haul is the largest seizure of cannabis since last August, when 783kg of cannabis herb was seized  at Rosslare Port by Revenue and gardaí.

Last October, Revenue and the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau seized 429kg of cannabis herb in Tallaght, South Dublin.

More recently, 112kg of cannabis herb was confiscated in Co Donegal in another joint operation.

Controlled deliveries are often used by law enforcement agencies in the drugs area, including in trying to detect the intended recipients of drugs that the agencies are aware of, either as a result of detection at a port or from intelligence.

Back in 2021, 500kg of cocaine was intercepted by police in Rotterdam inside a container coming from South America on its way to Dublin Port.

Dutch police, gardaí and Revenue organised a controlled delivery of the cocaine to continue to Dublin Port — where it was confiscated.