GARDAÍ HAVE SEIZED cocaine and cannabis with a street value of more than €2.1 million following searches in Kildare and Westmeath.

Officers from the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau also recovered more than €112,000 in cash following the searches on Saturday.

The operation, which targeted transnational organised crime, was supported by a number of national units and personnel from the Eastern Region and led to the arrest of five men and one woman.

During an initial search, gardai seized approximately 29kg of suspected cocaine with an estimated street value of around €2 million and €112,050 in cash.

As part of follow-up searches, a pill manufacturing facility was discovered containing two pill-making machines.

A suspected pill-making machine.

Cannabis with an estimated street value of €125,000 was seized along with other drug paraphernalia.

A cannabis cultivation facility was also discovered.

Two men have been charged with drug-related offences and are due to appear today before Naas District Court.

Another man and woman have since been released without charge pending a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Two other men remain in Garda custody.

A pill manufacturing facility and cannabis cultivation factory.

Assistant Commissioner Justin Kelly said: “I commend the detectives involved in this successful operation to disrupt an organised criminal group exploiting our communities.

“This work shows our absolute determination to target the activities of key individuals involved in the production and distribution of controlled drugs.

“Illicit pill manufacturing is undertaken in dangerous clandestine facilities with no control measures whatsoever in place, adding to the risk to end users.”