Millions of illegal cigs captured

The 120 million cigarettes were being passed off as animal feed

A massive cigarette-smuggling operation by a cross-border criminal gang has been smashed.

In what was described as the biggest seizure in the UK and Ireland, more than 120 million cigarettes were seized on a ship at Greenore, County Louth.

About 150 law enforcement officers from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland were involved in the operation.

Two men from County Armagh were among nine people arrested in County Louth. The cigarettes are worth 50m euros.

The ship had left the Philippines on 15 September carrying a cargo declared as animal feed. It arrived in Greenore early on Monday where officials kept it under surveillance.

'Global scale'

After the cargo was unloaded, officers followed trucks to another location and raided several premises in the County Louth area. The vessel has also been searched.

HM Revenue and Customs spokesman John Whiting said the operation targeted a suspected organised crime group operating on both sides of the Irish border

"This smuggling attempt was organised crime on a global scale," he said.

"Today's operation shows that those who think they can exploit international borders for criminal purposes and to escape justice are wrong."

Irish police commissioner Fachtna Murphy said it was a "significant strike against organised crime".