County Fermanagh: Five arrests after three million cigarettes seized

Officers from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) attended a property in County Fermanagh on Thursday along with colleagues from the PSNI

Five men have been arrested and three million suspected illicit cigarettes seized during an operation in County Fermanagh.

Officers from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) attended a property in Enniskillen on 3 December along with colleagues from the PSNI.

The men were arrested at the scene and a container of cigarettes was seized.

HMRC said the tobacco products are worth an estimated £1.3m in lost taxes and duties.

The arrested men are aged 28, 32, 37, 39 and 67.

The suspected illicit tobacco was being transported in a container marked "tinned peas" from Holland to Dublin Port, before being transferred by lorry to Enniskillen.

Approximately €3,500 (£3,178) in cash was also seized in the operation which involved the Irish Revenue Commissioners and Dutch authorities.

The suspected illicit tobacco was being transported in a container declared as tinned peas from Holland to Dublin Port

One business property was searched during the Joint Agency Task Force operation.

Steve Tracey, HMRC's assistant director with the Fraud Investigation Service, said the HMRC and partner agencies are "continuing to work together and are prepared to deploy where necessary to disrupt and dismantle the illicit trade of tobacco and other forms of criminality".

He said it showed "what can be achieved by our ongoing cooperation across jurisdictions to tackle criminality and demonstrates that we are committed to working with each other, at every level and in every location to tackle organised crime on a cross-border basis".

The five men arrested by the HMRC were released pending a report to the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland and investigations are continuing.