A man who was in possession of £17,000 worth of ecstasy tablets when arrested has been jailed for 10 years.
Daniel Hanlon (23), of Glin Park, Coolock, is the first person to be jailed, on a guilty plea, for the mandatory minimum term of ten years for possession of drugs worth in excess of £10,000 under the Criminal Justice Act 1999.
Judge Frank O'Donnell said: "I am not empowered to go off on a crusade of my own if I think that 10 years is too harsh. I have heard nothing in this case that is exceptional or specific".
Judge O'Donnell said Hanlon was carrying on a thriving business operating a take-away service whereby orders were placed by mobile-phone. He said that a plea of guilty when one is got red-handed did not qualify as exceptional and specific circumstances.
Hanlon admitted the possession of the ecstasy tablets for sale or supply on December 16th, 2000.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Hanlon's parents were concerned anti-drugs activists and that his mother was heavily involved in the task force in the Coolock area.