Revenue seize drugs, booze and cigarettes at Irish ports after dog noticed 'toys' parcel

Revenue officers, with the assistance of a dog called Sam, seized drugs, alcohol and cigarettes at various Irish ports over the last two days.

As part of routine operations and with the assistance of detector dogs, Revenue officers examining parcels at a premises in Dublin, seized over 7kgs of herbal cannabis and 1kg of butane hash oil, with a combined estimated value of more than €160,000.

The illegal drugs, were discovered in a parcel labelled as ‘toys’, that originated in Canada and were destined for an address in the Dublin 12 area.

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Separately, yesterday (14/09/2022), as a result of routine profiling, Revenue officers seized approximately 13,000 litres of wine at Rosslare Europort following the search of a French registered truck that had disembarked a ferry from Cherbourg, France.

The smuggled alcohol, had an estimated retail value of more than €158,000, representing a potential loss to the Exchequer of over €84,000.

Finally, over the course of last weekend (Friday 09/09/2022 and Saturday 10/09/2022), as a result of an intelligence led operation, Revenue officers at Dublin Airport seized 69,000 cigarettes with a retail value of approximately €44,000, representing a potential loss to the Exchequer of €35,000.

The illegal cigarettes, of various brands, were discovered when Revenue officers stopped and searched the checked baggage of three Romanian nationals who had disembarked a flight from Izmir, Turkey.

Investigations into these seizures are ongoing.

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.

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