Hoards of young people scour beach as £3.4million of cocaine washes ashore

22 July 2023 , 17:37

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Hoards of young people were seen scouring an Irish beach as £3.4m of cocaine washes ashore

Young people were seen searching an Irish coast line with torches after large bales of suspected cocaine, worth an estimated £3.4million, washed up.

Groups of youngsters were spotted combing the beach at Horn Head, outside Dunfanaghy, claiming they were helping a search operation to locate the drugs.

They were confronted after being observed on a farmer's land during Wednesday night and the early hours of Thursday morning.

It comes after the multi-million bales of cocaine was discovered washed up on the shoreline on Wednesday morning in Dunfanaghy and Fanad, Sky reports.

Police officials have confirmed the packages weighed around 60kg and will be tested at the Forensic Science Ireland site by specialists to confirm its contents.

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Another group was seen searching along the coastline at Bloody Foreland in Gaoth Dobhair.

Detectives are appealing to landowners in the Fanad Head area with coastal land to get in touch with them urgently if they see any similar packages or other marine debris. The same appeal has been issued to people using the north Donegal coastline.

Police have also reached out to people trying to "help" with the search operation and appealed to them not to interfere with anything found.

Officers from Customs and Excise cordoned off a pier yesterday in Magheraroarty in West Donegal and boarded a fishing vessel, which remains impounded.

Earlier this week, five tonnes of cocaine with a street value of £737m were seized from a "suspicious" fishing boat near Sicily.

According to border police, it was the biggest cocaine bust ever performed on Italian territory.

Elsewhere, a cocaine shipment worth €11.4 million was seized by Revenue Customs Officers at Rosslare Europort Harbour, Wexford on Thursday, July 13.

Revenue Customs Officers at Rosslare Europort Harbour conducted a search of a horsebox which had disembarked a ferry at approximately 1.30pm.

During the course of this search an estimated 163kg of suspected cocaine was discovered.

Wexford Gardaí attended the scene and arrested two men, aged in their 20s and 30s, in relation to this seizure who are both currently detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996, at a Garda Station in the Wexford District.

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A Garda statement said: "At approximately 1:30pm, Revenue Customs Officers conducted a search of a horsebox which had disembarked a ferry.

"During the course of this search an estimated 163kg of suspected cocaine was discovered."

Sean McPolin