IRISH Revenue officers have seized contraband worth nearly €350,000 in a series of operations carried out last week across the country.
The operations resulted in the confiscation of a wide range of drugs, counterfeit products, untaxed alcohol and tobacco and even weapons.
One of the most significant hauls came from Rosslare Europort on August 21st, where revenue officers seized approximately 11,340 litres of red wine.
The consignment had arrived in a trailer that disembarked a ferry from Dunkirk, France. Following a routine profiling operation, the trailer and its contents were detained.
The retail value of the wine is estimated at over €138,000, representing a potential loss to the Exchequer of more than €48,000 in unpaid taxes.
In total, more than 11,450 litres of alcohol were seized across various operations, with an estimated retail value of €139,750 and a potential tax loss of nearly €75,000.
Drugs also featured heavily among the seized items.
Revenue officers intercepted a series of parcels originating from the United States, Thailand and Britain.
These packages, destined for multiple addresses across Ireland, contained 1.59 kilograms of herbal cannabis valued at over €25,000, along with tablets, cannabis oil, edibles, synthetic cannabinoids, MDMA, ketamine, and other substances.
The total value of the illicit drugs was over €27,000.
In addition to drugs and alcohol, revenue officers uncovered counterfeit goods worth over €93,000.
Among these were 200 imitation Labubu dolls, inspired by the popular character from Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung’s toy series.
Labubu dolls have surged in popularity worldwide, contributing to massive revenues for parent company Pop Mart.
The seizure also included 374 fake items mimicking high-end brands such as Adidas, Birkenstock, Cartier, Moncler, Nike and Louis Vuitton.
Tobacco products worth more than €4,000 were also confiscated during the week, amounting to a further potential tax loss of over €3,000.
Adding to the haul, revenue officers seized 18 weapons and pellets, including an airsoft submachine gun and a nunchuck.
All of the operations are currently under investigation.
While no arrests have been officially confirmed, Revenue has stated that enquiries are ongoing across multiple jurisdictions.