This article is from page 3 of the 2006-10-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 3 JPG
THOUSANDS of counterfeit DVDs and €3,000 worth of fireworks were seized by gardaí in Ennis in separate operations over the weekend.
An assortment of fireworks were confiscated, during a planned search of a house on the outskirts of Ennis on Sunday morning. A man in his 20s was questioned at the scene and a file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Gardaí say they believe the variety of fireworks were for sale in the Ennis market for Halloween and are warning that people found in possession of fireworks will be prosecuted.
“Some of these will be sent for analysis to the forensic science laboratory, while the rest will be destroyed,” said a Garda source.
This seizure followed a seizure of €150 worth of fireworks, along with three forged drivers’ licences, at a house in Miltown Malbay last Thursday.
A man was questioned in relation to those fireworks.
Last month, €800 worth of fireworks was seized when a van was stopped and searched in Inagh. Two men, from the Ennis area, were questioned by gardaí. Gardai believe these fireworks were intended for sale in various parts of the county, in the run-up to Halloween.
The existence of fireworks throughout the county in recent weeks has prompted gardaí to reiterate their warnings that fireworks are illegal and dangerous.
“We are warning about the dangers of fireworks. Several children have been taken to hospital with injuries in other parts of the country. We cannot stress this enough,” added the source.
Separately, gardaí swooped on a house in Ennis on Saturday morning and seized thousands of counterfeit DVDs, which they said were to be sold on the Internet, all over the world. Computer records were also seized. A man in his 40s from the Ennis area was questioned at the scene.
The DVDs will be analysed and a file will then be prepared for the DPP.
“We believe a lot of the DVDs were genuine, but many of them were being copied and the copies were intended for sale, via the internet, all over the world. Many of the DVDs are not new releases. We believe collectors were being targeted and they believed they were buying original dvds, when that was not the case,” said a Garda source.
“We will have to examine the DVDs that were seized. This operation was part of an ongoing investigation. All sales were Internet-based,” he added.