Customs officers have seized more than eight million cigarettes in an anti-smuggling operation at Dublin Port, it emerged tonight.
The cigarettes were discovered in a container which arrived from China last Friday, which was kept under surveillance until it was moved the following day.
The container was stopped as it was travelled northbound on the M1, near Swords, and brought back to the port.
The truck and trailer were seized and a private residence was also searched under warrant.
A number of suspects are being questioned as a result of the weekend operation, code named Monarch.
A customs spokeswoman said the 8.25 million contraband Regal’ cigarettes have a retail value of approximately €3.5 million and a potential loss to the exchequer of €2.95 million.
They had been had been declared on the ship’s manifest as aluminium foil trays.
Investigations are ongoing both nationally and internationally.
“This latest seizure brings the total cigarettes seized by Customs to date to approximately 53 million with a retail value of approximately €22 million,” added a spokeswoman.
PA
