Gardaí arrest 17 people and seize €50k worth of drugs in Cork operation
Cocaine, cannabis and ecstasy tablets worth almost €50,000 were seized by gardaí in Cork city as part of a 24-hour crime crackdown.
Gardaí arrested 17 people on drugs, burglary, theft, fraud and robbery charges in an Operation Thor day of action.
Cocaine worth €28,700; €7,000 of cannabis resin; €300 of cannabis herb; and €3,600 in cash were seized at an apartment on Wellington Rd.
It is understood that these drugs were intended for the Cork market. A man in his 30s was arrested and detained at Mayfield Garda Station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996. He has since been charged to appear before Cork City District Court at a later date.
Drugs worth €5,700 were discovered during a second unrelated search at a house on Saint Colmcille Road. Gardaí seized €2,500 of cannabis resin, €3,000 of cannabis herb and €200 in ecstasy tablets. A man in his 30s was arrested and is currently detained at Gurranabraher Garda Station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
All of the suspected drugs that were seized in both searches will now be sent for analysis.
A caravan worth approximately €18,000 that was stolen in Britain was seized in the Gurranabraher area. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
A man in his 30s was also arrested on foot of a bench warrant in relation to a number of fraud incidents.
Of the 17 arrests made, five people were charged to appear before the courts, nine people were released while a file is sent to the DPP and three people are still in custody.
Gardaí in Cork warned of an increase in fraud incidents.
Accommodation fraud has become a concern in Cork this year with numerous reports made to gardaí. Last month, a man was scammed out of more than €1,400 to rent a bogus apartment in Douglas. No arrests have been made but the investigation is ongoing.
A "change scam” has also been recurring in Cork shops in which a suspect looks for change of a high value note, they then confuse the shop assistant with other requests which results in the shop handing over money it should not have.
Gardaí also warned that people’s bank cards are being used without their consent, usually via contactless transaction. If anyone loses or has their bank card stolen, gardaí said that people must report it immediately to minimise any potential loss.
Match and concert tickets have also been bought online which never arrived to the buyer. Gardaí warned people to be vigilant, make sure that the person is genuine and never send cash or use a money transfer company unless you are entirely satisfied.
