An Irishman has been jailed in Amsterdam for two years for possession of nearly 47,000 Ecstasy tablets.
Adrian Andrew Lawlor (32), from Dublin, had earlier convictions in Ireland for drugs offences, his trial heard - includinga five-year sentence in 1995 for possession of amphetamines.
A charge of attempted murder arising out of claims that Lawlor had tried to kill an acquaintance who, according to the police investigation, either jumped or was pushed out of his Amsterdam apartment window during a wild party, was dismissed due to lack of evidence.
A further charge of possession of a dangerous weapon - a crossbow - against Lawlor was dropped on a technicality while he was convicted of possession of a false driving licence.
Dutch police were called to Lawlor'sexpensive rented apartment in an upmarket district ofAmstelveen, an Amsterdam suburb where a house warming party was going on last March after persistent complaints about excessive noise from neighbors.
A guest had allegedly fled the flat escaping through an upstairs window claiming that the accused shot at him with a crossbow, the trial was told.
But the alleged victim, a 25-year-old Galway man had since refused to come forward and could not be traced.
Lawlor, described as self-employedhad attended top schools and came from a respectable family in Ireland, his trial had been told.
He denied trying to harm the second Irishman who was very drunk and troublesome during his housewarming party, he said.
Lawlor also denied that the ecstacy tablets belonged to him. They werediscovered in his car after was followed by an elite Dutch anti-drugs police unit.