Heroin and ecstasy tablets worth an estimated £4.7 million were seized in Dublin by the Garda yesterday in what was claimed to be the biggest drugs seizure in the State.
Following an ongoing surveillance operation by the Garda National Drugs Unit, divisional units and the Garda National Surveillance Unit seized some 15 kilogrammes of heroin when they stopped a car in Lucan shortly after midnight. Some 100,000 ecstasy tablets were also found. A man and a woman were arrested.
In a follow-up operation in Kilmainham in Dublin's south inner city, a further 0.5 kilogrammes of heroin was seized, as well as two imitation firearms. Gardai are holding three men and two women for questioning.
The five were yesterday being held at Blanchardstown and Kevin Street Garda stations under Section 2 of the Drug Trafficking Act 1996. They may be held for up to seven days without charge.
The Garda yesterday estimated the value of the heroin at £3.5 million and the ecstasy tablets at £1.2 million. Other reports claimed the purity of the heroin seized would mean it could be "cut" several times, increasing the volume and therefore the value.
Det Supt Noel White, of the Garda National Drugs Unit, said the seizure would affect the supply of heroin on the streets for "some time to come" and would represent a sizeable loss to the people responsible for bringing it into the country.
Asked whether the seizure of the drugs could be tied to a major drugs gang, Det Supt White said anyone importing such a significant amount of drugs into the State could be said to be involved in major trafficking. The Garda had "put a major dent in their equilibrium".
Jim Cusack, Security Editor, adds: A south Dublin criminal in his late 20s is believed to have been responsible for smuggling the haul of heroin and ecstasy seized outside Lucan yesterday.
The criminal, who is well-known to gardai, has been involved in various types of crime since his teenage years. In the past two years, he has become one of the biggest drugs suppliers in the south inner city.