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• Police and Customs officers have seized 17,500 litres of
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laundered fuel in Northern Ireland, but critics argue that this is just the tip of the iceberg.
The joint search of premises at Crossmaglen, South Armagh led to the discovery of a "highly sophisticated" operation, according to the officers involved in the seizure. Initial estimates suggest that the plant had the potential capacity to launder more than 150,000 litres of rebated fuel per week, to evade about £75,000 of duty.
A local man was arrested and enquiries are continuing.
A Customs spokesman says: "The operation was capable of producing huge volumes of fuel laundered with corrosive chemicals which have the potential to destroy an engine very quickly."
But Phil Flanders, regional officer at the Road Haulage Association, warns that the amount seized was "very small beer compared to the hundreds of millions of litres of fuel laundered every year".
The move comes as the Northern Ireland Select Committee is believed to be preparing for an investigation into this growing problem.
• Customs confidential hotline: 0800 59 5000.