A CANNABIS cultivation operation discovered in Co Kilkenny contained plants and harvested crops with an estimated street value of some €3 million.
Garda sources said it was being run “on an industrial scale” and was one of the biggest growing operations ever found in the Republic.
The haul was discovered in rented industrial units at Kildalton in the village of Piltown, Co Kilkenny, following an intelligence-led operation involving the Garda National Drugs Unit and local gardaí from Kilkenny and Waterford.
Gardaí believe the find is linked to an Asian gang, controlled by Chinese and Vietnamese criminals, who have been operating for some time in the southeast.
Other growhouse operations linked to the gang have been discovered in recent years and the group has remained under intense investigation and surveillance as part of the Garda National Drug Unit’s Operation Nitrogen, a national investigation aimed at tackling growhouse gangs.
Detectives came into intelligence that suggested two industrial units had been rented by the gang in the village of Piltown and were being used to cultivate large cannabis crops.
A large search team was assembled on Wednesday evening and carried out a raid on the premises. That team was made up of local uniformed and detective gardaí, members of the Garda National Drugs Unit and armed members of the Regional Support Unit.
When the search team moved in on the rented units, they found a large crop of some 3,000 plants at different stages of maturity growing in both units.
Sections of each unit had been split to cater for crops at differing stages of maturity, from sapling plants to those ready for harvesting.
Some older crops that had recently matured had been cut down and dried and packaged into plastic wrapping for sale in wholesale quantities. Vacuum-packing machinery used in the packing process was also found.
When gardaí raided the premises they found three men, all believed to be Chinese nationals in their 30s and who are in the Republic illegally. They had been brought in to tend to the crops and were living in the industrial units where the crops were growing.
They were arrested under section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking Act) 1996 and were last night being held at Thomastown and Kilkenny Garda stations. Criminal charges are expected to be brought against all three immediately.
Garda sources said both units where the crops were growing had been rented in recent months and that the cannabis had been growing there for an estimated three months before being discovered.
After they were rented, the units were converted in a sophisticated manner, including the installation of all equipment needed to grow the crops quickly in a warm environment, such as high-wattage lamps that mimic the heat and brightness of the sun.
The crops were being watered using a complex irrigation system.
