Gardaí have arrested 17 people as part of an Operation Thor day of action.

This is in relation to recent incidents of burglary, theft, fraud, robbery, possession of drugs for sale and supply, and possession of drugs for personal use.

Gardaí have also seized €41,700 of suspected drugs and €3,600 in cash.

A search warrant was carried out at an apartment on Wellington Road in Cork, which resulted in the seizure of €28,700 of suspected cocaine, €7,000 of suspected cannabis resin, €300 of suspected cannabis herb and €3,600 in cash.

A man aged in his 30s was arrested and detained at Mayfield Garda station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act.

He has since been charged to appear before Cork City District Court at a later date.

A second unrelated search was carried out at a house on Saint Colmcille Road.

This resulted in the seizure of €2,500 of suspected cannabis resin, €3,000 of suspected cannabis herb and €200 of suspected ecstasy tablets.

A man in his 30s was arrested there and is currently detained at Gurranabraher Garda station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

All of the suspected drugs that were seized in both searches have been sent for analysis.

A caravan worth approximately €18,000, that was stolen in the UK, was seized in the Gurranabraher area.

No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.

A man in his 30s was also arrested on foot of a bench warrant in relation to a number of fraud incidents.

Of the 17 arrests made five were charged to appear before the courts, nine were released for file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), and three are still in custody.

Gardaí in Cork say they have had increased fraud incidents such as a 'change scam' - where a suspect enters a shop and looks for change of a high value note.

They then confuse the shop assistant with other requests which results in the shop handing over money it should not have.

Other incidents are where people's bank cards are being used without their consent.

This is usually done through a contactless transaction.

If anyone loses or has their bank car stolen, Gardaí say it is essential that they report it immediately to minimise any potential loss.

They also have incidents where people buy items like match and concert tickets via an online marketplace, and never receive the tickets.

"Be sure that the person is genuine and never send cash or use a money transfer company unless you are entirely satisfied", the force says.

This year, Gardaí in Cork have had numerous reports of accommodation fraud - and last month received a report from a man who handed over €1,400 to rent an apartment in Douglas.

This was done online and turned out to be fake.

Crime Prevention Officer, Sergeant Tony Davis, says: "Lots of money will be spent in shops and online over Christmas and the January sales and we want to make sure nobody is defrauded out of money.

"We have a few simple tips: do some research online and only buy from trusted sources, shops or brands that you are familiar with."