GARDAÍ AND the Department of Foreign Affairs are trying to establish whether a man arrested in Lebanon with a substantial consignment of cocaine is an Irish citizen.
The suspect, whose nationality is unclear but who sources said may be from the UK originally, was in possession of an Irish passport when arrested and was believed to be travelling under it.
Contacted by Lebanese authorities to aid the investigation, gardaí now believe the passport is owned by a man from Tallaght in Dublin.
“It appears the guy arrested in Lebanon got this Irish passport somehow and doctored it to put his own picture in,” said one source familiar with the case.
The passport was not reported stolen or lost, and the facts around how it ended up in the possession of a suspected drugs smuggler in Lebanon are being investigated by the Garda and the Department of Foreign Affairs.
A department spokesman said staff were trying to determine whether the suspect has Irish citizenship and is eligible for consular assistance. The man who owns the passport is a drug user from Tallaght. It is anticipated gardaí will speak to him to determine whether he has information about how his passport has been used in doctored form in Lebanon.
