Robbie the Springer and the rest of the Customs’ canny canine squad sniffed out €17million worth of drugs and tobacco last year.
The work of the 19 specially-trained dogs was invaluable in the Revenue Commissioners’ battle against crime.
The team’s star is Robbie, a brown and white springer spaniel, who was the top dog again this year in a massive drugs haul that saw him sniff out over €6million worth of drugs in one go.
The latest figures on the success of Robbie and his squad were obtained by Social Democrats co-leader, Catherine Murphy, for Dublin Live.
She commended the great work of all involved and said it was a “great example of man, or woman, and best friend, dog, working together”.
Ms Murphy asked the Finance Minster in a Parliamentary Question for details on the amounts seized by the “dog detector unit” of the Revenue Commissioners last year.
And she asked if there were any plans to recruit more top dogs to the elite unit.
A spokesman for the Finance Minister supplied the response. He said: “I am advised by Revenue that it currently operates 19 Dog Detector Teams, which includes one team working on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
“A further seven posts, which are vacant due to staff movements, are in the process of being filled.”
A massive shipment of cocaine and cannabis was seized at Dublin Port in June with thanks to Robbie.
He was the hero when officers found €6.2million worth of illegal drugs.
Around 93kg of herbal cannabis with an estimated value of €1.9million and a further 62kg of cocaine worth an estimated €4.3million on the street were in the haul.
The drugs were found hidden in hot water cylinders in the trailer, which arrived at Dublin Port from Rotterdam.
