Jail for man caught with drugs worth almost €1.5 million

A man caught with €1.47 million of drugs after the caretaker to an apartment he was renting spotted white powder lying around has been jailed for five and a half years.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Christopher Dunne (27) rented the flat in his own name for third parties and broke down bulk drugs that would arrive at the premises into smaller packages.

He told gardaí that he had lost his job at Intel, become depressed and was spending thousands of euro a week on cocaine when he was approached by third parties. He said he got involved to offset his substantial drug debt.

Dunne, a father-of-two of Ros Glas Avenue, Monasterevin, Co Kildare, pleaded guilty to possessing almost 19kg of cocaine worth €1.3 million and under 1kg of heroin valued at €170,000 at Lower Rathmines Road, Dublin, on November 11th, 2016.

He has minor road traffic convictions.

Det Garda Conor Breslin agreed with Keith Spencer BL, defending, that the flat complex caretaker went into the apartment rented by Dunne by mistake. The caretaker reported seeing white powder lying around to the letting agent, who then phoned gardaí­.

Det Gda Breslin told Fiona Murphy BL, prosecuting, that he and a colleague arrived on the scene to find the flat empty, but containing eight wrapped packages of cocaine and a digital weighing scales.

Dropped off

The detective said he also observed loose white powder, a black holdall bag and a wooden spoon.

He said a colleague arrested Dunne the following morning when he let himself into the flat.

Dunne told gardaí that third parties gave him money to rent the flat under his own name and his role was to put the drugs that were dropped off at the premises into packages to be moved on.

Det Gda Breslin agreed with Mr Spencer that Dunne told him he had a cocaine habit of thousands of euro a week at the time.

He further agreed Dunne admitted it was his own fault for getting involved in the crime and that he had not told his partner or family.

Mr Spencer submitted to Judge Martin Nolan that his client had worked all his adult life until he lost his Intel job and became addicted to cocaine.

Counsel said Dunne had since become drug-free. He asked the judge to consider a sentence with a significantly suspended portion.

Judge Nolan noted that it was a serious offence and that Dunne was “not quite lowest but close to lower level” in the operation.

He said the appropriate sentence was five and a half years. He added that there was no point imposing a sentence with suspended elements as it was “highly unlikely” Dunne would re-offend.