Four held after heating oil raids

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Four people have been arrested in a cross-border operation into oils fraud, HM Revenue & Customs has said.

Commercial and domestic premises in Omagh, Derrylin and Ballyconnell were raided by customs officers and police.

HMRC said the operation involved smuggling home heating oil from Northern Ireland for sale into the black market in the Republic.

Three men and one woman in County Tyrone were arrested and oil and a quantity of cash seized.

The scam is estimated to be worth £250,000 per annum in lost revenue.

John Whiting of the HMRC in Northern Ireland said the investigation was into a "a complex VAT fraud".

HMRC seized 18,000 litres of kerosene and 8,500 litres of green diesel together with a tanker. A quantity of cash totalling £20,000 was also seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act.