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Drug Bust in Dublin
A man in his 30s has been arrested after drugs worth more than EUR340,000 were seized at Dublin Airport. It was discovered when a passenger disembarked a flight from Los Angeles and his luggage was searched.
The new Netflix series Narcos revisits Celtic Tiger Ireland, where cocaine fuelled opportunistic powder pushers. Veronica Guerin changed the landscape, even if it cost her her life.
Cocaine
Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid which acts as a central nervous system stimulant and is used recreationally. It is known to cause feelings of euphoria and arousal, but can also lead to paranoia and delusions. It can be found in the leaves and seeds of the coca plant, or extracted from cocaine-laden ‘crack’ cocaine.
Garda
Whether or not you’re hooked on the new Netflix original series Narcos about Colombian drug kingpin Pablo Escobar, it’s a good time to take a look back at some of Ireland’s biggest drug busts. From heroin to meth, here’s a rundown of some of the country’s most high-profile seizures.
Herbal Cannabis
A man in his 60s was arrested after a drug seizure worth about EUR2 million was discovered at Dublin Port. The drugs were concealed in an Irish-registered accompanied freight unit that had disembarked from a ferry. The discovery was made during an intelligence-led operation by gardai from the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau and personnel from Revenue’s Customs Service.
Herbal cannabis is made up of the dried flowers and leaves of the marijuana plant. It is less potent than resin, which is extracted to form hashish. The drug is legal for medical purposes in some countries.
In Ireland, it is illegal for adults over the age of 18 to possess cannabis, but there are some reform-minded lawmakers who want to change this law. The country currently has a bill that would decriminalize the drug. The bill is expected to be discussed in parliament next year. If it is passed, it could become law in 2020.
Methamphetamine
A Dublin family who was arrested for drug dealing had their 13-year-old son taken away. Their neighbors say they didn’t see anything suspicious going on at their home and are saddened by the arrests.
GARDAI HAVE SEIZED drugs with an estimated street value of EUR810,000 following searches in west Dublin. A man in his 50s and a woman in her 40s were arrested. They are being detained at Store Street Garda Station under the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996. The seizures were made in a series of searches carried out by the Dublin Crime Response Team and local Gardai. Cannabis herb and cocaine with an estimated street value of EUR560,000 and 4kg of MDMA with an estimated street value of EUR250,000 were seized. The drugs are being sent to Forensic Science Ireland for analysis.
In a separate operation, personnel from the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau intercepted and searched an Irish registered accompanied freight unit that had disembarked from a ferry at Dublin Port. They seized herbal cannabis with an estimated street value of EUR2 million.
Heroin
The highly addictive drug, heroin can cause a rush of euphoria, followed by a twilight state of sleep and wakefulness. It can also cause a dry mouth, clammy skin, constricted pupils, heavy extremities and can lead to overdose or death.
Revenue officers seized the drugs at Dublin Airport as a result of risk profiling. A man in his 30s was arrested and is being held at Store Street Garda Station.
While the Netflix original series Narcos is focusing on Colombian drug kingpin Pablo Escobar, the Irish show Dublin Narcos looks at the country’s own cocaine epidemic in the 80s and 90s. Featuring candid testimonials from drug dealers, cops and addicts, it’s a riveting look at Ireland’s cocaine boom. The series features Dean Scurry, a Dubliner who reflects on the hypocrisy of a community that welcomed alcohol but turned its back on anyone who sought comfort in heroin. He says the problem destroyed lives in Dublin and was devastating for those who were caught up in it.
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