There was a 260% increase in the amount of cigarettes seized by Revenue last year.
Almost 33 million euro worth were recovered.
Ireland has one of the highest retail prices for tobacco in Europe.
So it's attractive for smugglers to try to import illicit cigarettes.
According to freedom of information figures, Revenue seized 48.2 million cigarettes last year.
That's well over three times as many as the 13.4 million in 2019.
97% of the cigarettes seized last year were in Dublin.
The next highest was 302,000 in Westmeath, followed by 274,000 in Cork.
Fine Gael TD Neale Richmond says the increase is linked to the Covid pandemic.
"A lot of that is down to the increased Garda and agency numbers."
"As well as the impact of the pandemic."
"It's made it much harder for criminals to move around stolen goods and illicit goods like this."
Revenue seize tobacco worth over €2.4 million at Dublin Port. https://t.co/qsoHlqlQdt pic.twitter.com/gEjetDWlfo
— Revenue (@RevenueIE) July 22, 2021
The total value of the cigarettes seized by Revenue last year was 32.8 million euro.
That's compared to 8.6 million the previous year.
