Customs officers seized more than 10 million cigarettes in Dublin Port over the weekend.
The 10.3 million ‘Don Corleone’ brand cigarettes had a retail value of €4.7million, a spokeswoman for the Revenue’s Customs Service said.
A mobile scanner found the cigarettes concealed in a 40-foot container which had arrived into the port from Belgium. The cigarettes were described on the manifest as "paper handkerchiefs".
“These seizures are part of Revenue’s ongoing operations targeting the supply and sale of illegal cigarettes in the shadow economy”, Revenue said in a statement.
“ If businesses or members of the public have any information regarding the smuggling or sale of illegal cigarettes or tobacco, they can contact Revenue in confidence on free phone number 1800 295 295”.