A man arrested in connection with the biggest ever seizure of the highly-addictive synthetic drug crystal meth yesterday has been released.
Gardaí and customs officers investigating the activities of an eastern European drugs cartel found some 6kg (13.2lbs) of the drug in an operation in Co Offaly yesterday. The drug, the official name of which is methamphetamine, has previously only ever been found here in very small quantities.
A 32-year-old Lithuanian national who was arrested at the scene under section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act was released late last night
The discovery of the crystal meth was made as part of Operation Chestnut which was established last year to investigate gangs from eastern Europe importing drugs into the Republic.
Members of the Garda National Drugs Unit and Revenue's Customs officers put a surveillance operation in place after two vehicles suspected of containing drugs entered the Republic via Dublin Port.
The two vehicles were driven to a yard in Birr, Co Offaly, where they were left for collection. On Tuesday, when a man entered the yard to retrieve the drugs, gardaí moved in.
The vehicles containing the drugs were taken from Birr to Garda headquarters in the Phoenix Park, Dublin, for analysis.
A search of the vehicles yielded 8kg (17.63lbs) of herbal cannabis and 6kg of a substance which gardaí initially believed to be cocaine.
However, analysis of the drugs yesterday revealed that the portion of the haul believed to be cocaine was in fact crystal meth.
Yesterday's haul is valued at up to €150,000. However, gardaí said the drug is found so infrequently here and in such small quantities that they have never established a per-kilo street value for it.
Gardaí believe the man arrested in Birr was working for a Lithuanian gang distributing drugs around Ireland.
Investigations were continuing last night, with follow-up searches in Cork and Kerry.