Customs officers in Cork yesterday found 10 million illegal cigarettes worth €4.2 million when searching a container on a ship from Malaysia.
The branded cigarettes, which represented a potential €3.5 million loss to the exchequer, were concealed in a 40ft container listed on import documents at Cork as containing “paper stationery”.
Customs service said the operation was completed with European anti-fraud office assistance. Some 54 million cigarettes worth €22.5 million have been seized by Customs this year.