LAST UPDATE | 26 Jan

FIVE PEOPLE HAVE been arrested after drugs, slash hooks, machetes and other items were seized in Co Cork. 

Gardaí carried out a coordinated operation today in response to recent criminal damage and violent disorder incidents in Doneraile and Mallow. 

During the course of the operation, searches were carried at 17 locations, including lands and 12 residential properties.

These raids led to the seizure of quantities of cocaine, cannabis, and a significant quantity of cigarettes.

Weapons such as slash hooks, machetes, and knives were confiscated.

Several mobile phones and documentation were also seized during the operation.

During today’s operation, a total of five people, two women and three men, were arrested. 

Two of the men have since been charged and brought before a sitting of Fermoy District Court, while the others have been charged and released from Garda custody to appear at a subsequent sitting of the district court. 

The operation involved over 70 members of An Garda Síochána from north Cork, including specialised units, alongside personnel from the Defence Forces, Revenue Customs, and the Department of Social Protection.

Investigations into these incidents are ongoing, gardaí said.