FOUR PEOPLE HAVE been arrested in connection with the seizure of over 50,000 cigarettes in Dublin Airport yesterday.

The three men and one woman are all Polish citizens and had arrived in Dublin from London when the West brand cigarettes were discovered in their suitcases. The four had previously travelled from Lviv in Ukraine via Munich in Germany.

The four appeared before Dublin District Court this morning and have been remanded in custody for a week.

The Revenue Customs Service says the cigarettes had an estimated retail value of €22,890 and a potential loss to the Exchequer of €20,450.

The Retailers Against Smugglers group said today that it believes smugglers are increasingly using Dublin Airport to bring illegal tobacco and cigarettes into the country. Spokesperson Benny Gilsenan said that the group “would like to thank Customs again for their vigilance, but the fact that seizures and arrests at the airport this year are increasing shows that it has become a gateway for smugglers”.

Gilsenan said that smugglers appear to be changing their tactics in trying to smuggle cigarettes in their luggage through the airport instead of in containers through Irish ports.