Drugs bust was major operation

A major anti-drugs swoop that discovered a reported €800,000 worth of cannabis plants in the Kilcullen area last night was the result of surveillance and information gathered, writes Brian Byrne.

A man in his 50s was arrested in the Garda operation, which raided a premises near Ballymount Church, south of Kilcullen.

The Diary understands that the cannabis value so far reported is on the 'conservative' side, and the downstream value of the plants seized may well be much higher.

As a rule of thumb, a single cannabis plant is estimated in Ireland to yield drugs to the value of around €500, so the 'factory' in Ballymount would have been a very substantial operation, not just an individual growing the 'weed' for localised use.

The arrested man is being questioned in Newbridge Garda Station.

The news of the bust answers the curiosity of many local people yesterday, who noted a very high level of Garda activity around Kilcullen, including unmarked cars, a checkpoint at Lui na Greine, and marked Garda vehicles in the town.

Industrial scale cannabis farming has become very prevalent in Ireland in recent years. Many of them involve Asian nationals and gangs, although some have also been operated by Irish criminal figures.

In many cases the facilities have been discovered when big 'spikes’ of electricity consumption in a premises has been noted.


Click on the ad for more information.