Convicted drugs dealer John Gilligan has lost his appeal against the State's bid to confiscate his assets.
The Special Criminal Court today gave Gilligan 12 months to pay €17,679,833 to the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB).
Gilligan's assets allegedly include an equestrian centre at Jessbrook, two houses in Lucan, a house at Blanchardstown, six vehicles, 16 bank accounts and more than £5 million he staked in bets.
But the Court said it would not be considering any of Gilligan’s supposed income from betting in its judgment. "However, whether or not, at the material time, Mr Gilligan did derive an income from illegal trafficking in tobacco and/or from his betting activities it is, in the view of the Court, totally irrelevant to this determination, and is not a matter upon which the Court is required to adjudicate," the judgment said.
In determining whether the Defendant has benefited from drug trafficking, the Court considered five matters:
- The cost to Gilligan of purchasing drugs;
- The amount of drugs involved in Gilligan's drug trafficking activities;
- The expenses incurred by Gilligan with regard to the shipment, sale and distribution of such drugs;
- The consideration received by Gilligan, when disposing of those drugs; and
- The net profit, (if any) accruing to Gilligan as a result of his drug trafficking activities.
The Court said it was satisfied "beyond any doubt" by the evidence that from April 1994 to October 1996, Gilligan was responsible for the importation into the State of "over one hundred consignments purporting to be 'spare parts' but, in fact, comprising illicit drugs; the total weight of which, including the weight of the cartons in which the drugs were transported, being in excess of 20,000 kilos".
The Court said it was satisfied that Gilligan imported a net amount of cannabis resin totalling 17,530 kilos which had cost him £21,000,000.36 to purchase. "The Court is also satisfied that Mr Gilligan disposed of those 17,530 kilos of cannabis resin for a price of £2,000 per kilo; in other words, the sum of £35,060,000.
The Court assumed for the purpose of its determination that the only expense incurred by Gilligan in the course of importing the drugs in to the State was the £1,000 per consignment which he paid to an agent called John Dunne.
"Accordingly making allowances for the £100,000, which he paid to John Dunne, to import the said quantities of cannabis resin into the State, it follows, in the view of the Court, that Mr Gilligan benefited from his drug trafficking activities to the extent that £13,924,000 or €17,679,833," the judgment said.
The Court concluded by saying that it "hereby makes a Confiscation Order against John Gilligan pursuant to the provisions of Section 4(4) of the Criminal Justice Act, 1994 requiring that the said John Gilligan do pay a sum of €17,679,833 within a period of twelve months from the present date".
Gilligan (49) is serving a 28-year prison sentence imposed by the Special Criminal Court on March 15th last year for drug offences including importing cannabis resin.
Gilligan's counsel, Mr Michael O'Higgins, said his client would be seeking leave to appeal the ruling.
