Man Arrested and Cannabis Seized in Operation Tara Searches in County Cork

As part of Operation Tara, the enhanced national anti-drugs strategy, An Garda Síochána has conducted a significant operation targeting the sale and supply of controlled drugs and organised crime in County Cork.

On Saturday, 26 September 2026, the Cork County Divisional Drugs Unit, with assistance from Cork County Crime Units, Regional Dog Units and the Armed Support Unit (ASU), carried out a planned search operation in the Mallow District.

During the course of this operation, several residential properties were searched. Cannabis with an estimated street value of approximately €208,000, pending analysis, was seized. One male in his 20s was arrested and is currently detained at a Garda Station in Cork County under the provisions of Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996.

In a follow-up search in Doneraile, cannabis with an estimated value of €115,000, subject to analysis, was also seized.

All seized drugs will be sent to Forensic Science Ireland for analysis. Investigations are ongoing.

This seizure forms part of Operation Tara, an enhanced national anti-drugs strategy launched by the Garda Commissioner in July 2021. The focus of Operation Tara is to disrupt, dismantle and prosecute drug trafficking networks at all levels, international, national and local, involved in the importation, distribution, cultivation, production, local sale and supply of controlled drugs.