Revenue officers at Dublin Airport have seized 45,000 cigarettes following routine operations.

They stopped and searched a passenger on Monday who had arrived from Nigeria via Frankfurt.

The cigarettes, branded 'Benson & Hedges', have a retail value of €27,000.

Revenue say this represents a potential loss to the exchequer of €21,375.

The passenger, a 35-year-old Nigerian man, was arrested.

He appeared before Judge Bryan Smyth in the Dublin District Court on Tuesday.

He was remanded in custody to Cloverhill until Monday May 28th, when he will be brought before the court again.