TWO DRUG SEIZURES BY GARDAI

Gardai are to send two separate files to the Director of Public Prosecutions following two separate drugs seizures in Cork city over the weekend.

Almost pounds 15,000 worth of drugs were recovered.

Uniformed and plainclothes gardai recovered pounds 8,000 worth of ecstasy tablets when they stopped and searched three men in their late teens and early 20s at Spring Lane in the Blackpool area of the city at around 8pm on Saturday.

Gardai found around 800 ecstasy tablets, arrested the men and brought them to Gurranabraher Garda Station for questioning.

All three were later released without charge and a file will be prepared on the matter for the DPP, said a Garda spokesman.

Earlier on Saturday, gardai recovered half a kilo of cannabis resin with a street value of pounds 5,000 when they stopped and searched a man in his late 20s as he was walking on the Carrigrohane Straight.

The man was arrested and taken to Togher Garda Station for questioning for a number of hours, but was released without charge and a file will be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The weekend seizures are the fourth by gardai in Cork in the past week and follow the discovery of pounds 70,000 worth of cannabis resin by members of the Cork City Divisional Drugs Squad in the Mayfield area on Thursday night.

Detectives raided a number of houses and found a total of seven kilos of the drugs.

Two men were arrested during the raids and a third later in a follow up operation in Blackpool on Friday.

All three were later released and a file is to be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions. Earlier in the week, a uniformed garda from Carrigaline, Co. Cork, recovered pounds 30,000 worth of cannabis resin when he noticed a man behaving suspiciously in the Monkstown area and arrested him.

A file on that matter is also being prepared for the DPP.