Gardaí have disrupted a major organised crime gang distributing illicit drugs nationwide following the seizure of cannabis valued at €11 million and three firearms.
One of four men under arrested last night was being described by gardaí as a "very significant" player in the drugs trade. Yesterday's seizure brings to €25 million the value of illicit drugs found by gardaí so far this year.
The guns included a rifle fitted with a telescopic sight and silencer, a pump action shotgun and a single barrel shotgun. They were seized at a house in Clongorey, near Newbridge, Co Kildare, where a tonne of cannabis was also found.
Another 500kg in the 1.5 tonne haul were found after gardaí stopped a car and van in Kill, Co Kildare, as they were travelling on the Naas Road to Dublin at 7.30am. The drugs were found in the van which was being escorted by the driver of the Fiesta car.
Supt Kevin Donohoe of the Garda press office said the operation was typical of the kind of investigations Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy was referring to last week when he said he wanted specialist Garda units "in the faces" of organised gangs.
"This is a big seizure by any standards," Supt Donohoe said. "It's upset a key distribution channel and taken €11 million in drugs off the streets and €11 million out of the pockets of those responsible."
The operation was led by the Garda National Drugs Unit with drugs units in Naas and Newbridge.
The main players in the gang had been under surveillance for some time. Gardaí believe a small portion of the shipment had already been distributed.
Forensic tests were being carried to determine if cannabis valued at €910,000 seized in Ballyfermot, Dublin, last week was part of the consignment.
The drivers of both vehicles stopped on the Naas Road are Dubliners in their mid 30s and 40s. They were taken to Naas Garda station where they were still being held last night.
The man in his 30s is from the North Strand, Dublin. The suspect in his 40s is from Donaghmede and living in Kinsealy.
He is regarded as the second in command in the gang that had imported the drugs. It is led by a well-known criminal from Baldoyle and has links to Irish drugs wholesalers based in Europe.
After the arrests on the Naas Road gardaí moved in on the bungalow in Clongorey. They found a 40-foot truck and one tonne of cannabis in a warehouse at the back of the house. The search also yielded the three firearms.
The drugs haul was so big that gang members had used a forklift to move it from the lorry into the warehouse.
Empty boxes were found in the warehouse and gardaí believe the contents had just been loaded into the van found on the Naas Road. The drugs were in vacuum packed blocks and are believed to have entered the State from mainland Europe by car ferry in the last 10 days.
As the drugs and guns were found at the Clongorey house another team of gardaí arrested two men, both in their 30s, in a car in an industrial estate near Newbridge.
One of them is from Clongorey while the other is from Ballymun. They were being held at Newbridge Garda station. All four men can be held for seven days without charge.
