Thousands of cigarettes seized

Nearly 40,000 cigarettes were seized at Cork Airport this week.

As part of an intelligence-led operation, Revenue officers seized 39,800 unstamped cigarettes when they stopped and searched a passenger’s checked in luggage on arrival in the airport.

The man was off a flight from Lagos, Nigeria via Paris and the Benson & Hedges branded cigarettes have an estimated retail value of approximately €19,500 representing a potential loss to the Exchequer of €16,700.

A Revenue spokesperson said: “A man in his 30s, a Nigerian national, was interviewed in relation to the seizure. Investigations are ongoing.”

The seizure was part of Revenue’s ongoing operations targeting the shadow economy and the supply and sale of illegal tobacco products, it said.