As part of an ongoing operation targeting the sale and supply of drugs here in Co Tipperary; Gardaí from the Divisional Drugs Unit, ably assisted by Nenagh Gardaí, executed a search warrant on a house in the town of Nenagh North Tipperary on Saturday last.
During the course of this search Gardaí uncovered and seized suspected cocaine with a street value of some €6,000, together with a weighing scale.
A man, aged in his late 30’s, was duly arrested, but has since been released. A file will now be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
Europol’s 2019 Drug Markets Report
According to Europol’s 2019 Drug Markets Report, rather than sell drugs to local dealers in provincial towns, organised crime groups continue to sell their drugs product themselves. Provincial towns are considered attractive markets to gain direct access to both the local drug users and other potential new customers, with the end user buying directly from big-city criminals, who are more likely to use extreme violence in the enforcement of any outstanding debts.
Irish drug gangs operate a three-tier structure. At the top are located the serious players/importers, who are most often linked through family ties.
They in turn control the middle tier, latter comprising criminals engaged in high-risk, often low-reward activities, such as transporting, holding and dealing the drugs. These individuals carrying guns, and conduct shootings, beatings and other serious intimidation.
At the bottom is a large number of usually highly disadvantaged young people, latter who are often addicted themselves. It is this bottom tier that carry out the bulk of local intimidations and according to Europol, their typical activities are bullying, assaulting, stealing, vandalising and spreading fear on behalf of the overall network.
There are 700 psychoactive substances/drugs being sold on the European market today, the effects of which can be devastating to both users and their families. The end result is that, almost every day, one person dies from drug poisoning here in Ireland and the majority of those who die are male and in their late 30’s.
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