Man arrested after cocaine worth estimated £1m seized in Co Tyrone

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, Press Association

A man has been arrested after cocaine worth an estimated £1 million (€1.6 million) was seized in Co Tyrone.

Police said the arrest came as a result of the forensic examination of two mobile phones seized from a vehicle stopped in the Markethill area of Co Armagh in January.

An inspector said the phones showed evidence of organised drug supply of both cocaine and cannabis, and the movement of illicit cash; indecent images of children were also found on a phone.

A 30-year-old man was arrested on Friday in the Cookstown area on suspicion of offences relating to drug supply, money laundering and indecent images of children.

As a result of related searches, suspected cocaine with an estimated street value of £1 million was found at a property in Dungannon.

“This arrest displays two things: firstly, our commitment to tackling this type of harm using all the technical capabilities at our disposal, and secondly, the multi-layered criminality that organised criminal groups are involved in,” Detective Inspector Conor Sweeney said.

“People do need to understand that for every gram of cocaine they buy from a drug dealer, there is a real level of harm behind that.

“This harm may not be immediately visible, but it is very real.

“I would appeal to people who have information that can help police deal with organised criminality of any type to contact police on 101.”