Revenue seize herbal cannabis, cigarettes and alcohol worth over €330,000

Over the course of the last week, Revenue seized 11 kgs of herbal cannabis, 150,000 illegal cigarettes and over 1,700 litres of alcoholic cocktails. The details are summarised below:

On Monday (27/06/2022), as a result of routine profiling, Revenue officers seized over 1,700 litres of alcoholic cocktails at Dublin Port, following the search of a convoy of vehicles that arrived from the UK en-route to a music event in Dublin. The undeclared alcohol had an estimated retail value of more than €23,000, representing a potential loss to the Exchequer of approximately €12,000.

Separately, on Monday (27/06/2022), as part of an intelligence led operation, Revenue officers seized 150,000 ‘NZ Black Power’ branded cigarettes at Dublin Airport. The illegal cigarettes, which were discovered in an air cargo consignment originating in Lithuania and destined for an address in Dublin, had an estimated retail value of approximately €103,000, representing a potential loss to the Exchequer of over €82,000.

Finally, last Wednesday (22/06/2022), at Dublin Airport, Revenue officers seized approximately 11 kgs of herbal cannabis with an estimated value of €211,000. The illegal drugs were discovered concealed in an air cargo consignment, originating in the US and destined for an address in Dublin, that was manifested as ‘sleeping bags’, ‘insulated socks’ and ‘waterproof parts’.

These seizures are part of Revenue's ongoing operations targeting the shadow economy and smuggling. If businesses, or members of the public, have any information regarding smuggling, they can contact Revenue in confidence on Confidential Phone Number 1800 295 295.

[ENDS 29/06/2022]