Man, 20s, arrested after €100,000 drugs bust in Carrigaline
The drugs seized during the searches on Tuesday night. Picture: Garda Info
More than €100,000 worth of cocaine, ketamine, MDMA, and cannabis has been seized by gardaí in a suburban housing estate in Cork.
A man in his 20s was arrested.
Approximately €96,500 worth of suspected cocaine, €5,400 of ketamine, €2,000 MDMA, and €1,800 in cannabis was uncovered and seized in a house in Carrigaline.
The drugs were destined for local distribution, garda sources say. They were found in a property in a housing estate in the Cork suburb, an area popular with young families.
As part of ongoing operations targeting the sale and supply of drugs in the Cork area, gardaí attached to the Togher Drugs unit executed a search under warrant at the home in Carrigaline at approximately 9:30pm on Tuesday night.
A man, aged in his 20s, was subsequently arrested and brought to a Garda Station in County Cork.
He was being detained under Section 2 of Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996 yesterday.
A garda spokesperson said the seized drugs have been sent for further analysis and investigation is ongoing.
"Drugs are always there in the background but when something like this comes so close to your door it's shocking," local Fianna Fáil councillor Audrey Buckley said.
"People locally are delighted that someone has been caught. But people are also sad that these are now the times we're living in. It's at our door now and it's a red flag for people."
Local councillor Úna McCarthy said there is concern that the seizure may just be "the tip of the iceberg" and called for more garda resources to tackle the problem.
"I would like to commend the Gardaí from the Drugs Unit for their excellent work on this operation.
"However, from conversations with Gardaí and people in the community, I am concerned that Carrigaline has a flourishing drugs market.
"It is imperative that we take stronger action to tackle the drugs trade in Cork. To do this effectively, we need an increased Garda presence on the ground. I am therefore calling on the new government and Minister for Justice to prioritise the allocation of more Gardaí to units across Cork, ensuring we have the resources necessary to combat this growing problem."
