An Garda Síochána have seized cocaine valued at more than €10 million after a surveillance operation on a sophisticated drugs distribution hub – headed by a well-known figure from the southeast – resulted in the discovery of a secret compartment in a truck that was packed with drugs.
The truck, which was stopped by gardaí on the M9 in Co Kilkenny on Tuesday, had been modified to create the hidden compartment in a tactic that has now been discovered several times during Garda operations in recent years.
The force also suspects the consignment of cocaine originated in South America and may have covertly landed on the coastline after being collected in “fast boats” from a mother ship that brought the haul into Irish waters.
A man (60s) arrested as part of the operation has legitimate business interests, including in the logistics sector. Gardaí are trying to establish if he used his contacts and infrastructure to aid the drug smuggling operation.
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He has been a target of the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (DOCB) for some time.
Gardaí believe the suspect has links to the Dublin-based gang that is sometimes referred to in media reports as “The Family”. It has surpassed the Kinahan cartel’s Irish operation as the biggest drugs network in the Republic.
The gang, and others working for it, were targeted by an international policing operation last year when the Australian-run Ghost encrypted messaging platform was infiltrated.
[ How ‘The Family’ Dublin drugs gang got snared in encrypted platform infiltrationOpens in new window ]
The hidden compartment in the truck was of very high quality and necessitated the vehicle being brought to Dublin Port, for X-ray with a specialist scanner. When the precise location and structure of the compartment was established, it facilitated the retrieval of the cocaine.
The compartment included a hydraulic system, which was electronically controlled to open and close, ensuring it was hidden and secure.
Gardaí from DOCB and Waterford Drug and Crime Units carried out the operation on Tuesday morning. As well as seizing the truck, they searched two business premises and a residential address in Co Waterford.
An estimated 152 kilograms of cocaine, valued at €10.6 million.
The suspect was arrested under Section 72 of the Criminal Justice Act, 2006 in relation to facilitating and enhancing drug distribution activities for an organised crime group and was being detained on Wednesday at a Garda station in the Eastern region.
The operation was supported by Revenue Customs Service, the Garda Dog Unit and the Stolen Motor Vehicle Investigation Unit.
Assistant commissioner Angela Willis, who is in charge of organised and serious crime, said: “This is a further example of An Garda Síochána’s commitment to target the enablers and facilitators of organised crime.
“The recently published European Union Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment highlights that serious and organised crime undermines the very foundations of political, economic and social cohesion and stability through illicit proceeds, the perpetuation of violence and the extension of corruption.”
The man arrested in connection with the drugs find was also suspected of involvement in a recent attempted smuggling operation. On that occasion, gardaí believe a large quantity of drugs was to be landed on the south-west coast - via modified fast boats, with stealth capacity, from a mother ship - though poor weather derailed the plan.
A large group of suspects was involved, including men from Ireland, continental Europe and the Middle East, in what gardaí said was a major conspiracy, with the logistics alone costing hundreds of thousands of euros.
The man being questioned by gardaí about the cocaine find in the truck on Tuesday was a suspect at the time.
Gardaí believe he has worked on a number of major smuggling operations involving domestic drugs gangs and international criminal networks conspiring to bring drugs originated in South America into the Republic.
He also has links to cross-Border crime, including being close to a senior figure in the Republican movement and has owned businesses in the Border region as well as the south east.
