£500k of cocaine found as detectives raid Fintona drug factory

Detectives from the PSNI Organised Crime Unit tonight announced that a haul of what they called “suspected cocaine” – with an estimated street value of around £500,000 – had been seized.
Creative Commons image of cocaine (contributed by V alerie Everett)Creative Commons image of cocaine (contributed by V alerie Everett)
Creative Commons image of cocaine (contributed by V alerie Everett)

It was discovered thanks to raids in or around the little Tyrone settlement of Fintona today.

The village is several miles south of Omagh, which is the nearest major town, and according to the 2011 census it had slightly over 500 households.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The PSNI said its officers had “uncovered a suspected drugs factory used in the production of Class A drugs” (cocaine is Class A).

Fintona from the air (GoogleMaps)Fintona from the air (GoogleMaps)
Fintona from the air (GoogleMaps)

Two men aged 35 and 25 have been arrested on suspicion of a number of drugs-related offences.

They are currently in police custody where they are being questioned by detectives.

Detective Inspector Shaw said: “The arrests and seizure were the result of searches carried out today in the Fintona area.

“Drugs cause significant harm.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Not only do they pose a risk to the lives of people who take them but also to their families who deal with the distressing fall out associated with drugs, including debt and intimidation.

“People who bring these drugs into our communities do not care about this pain and misery, instead they only care about the significant profits they can make. “We will continue to disrupt those involved in drugs related criminality and remove drugs and other harmful substances from our communities.

“I want to appeal to anyone with information about the supply of illegal drugs to get in touch with us on 101.”

More from this reporter:

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

——— ———

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers — and consequently the revenue we receive — we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Ireland and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Alistair Bushe

Editor