A Cork man has been found not guilty by direction of Judge Frank O'Donnell of attempting to possess heroin valued at almost €1 million.
Mr Michael O'Sullivan (51), with addresses at Courtown Drive, Knocknaheeny, and Model Farm Road, Cork, and who has lived for some time in Amsterdam, had denied that on April 1st, 2003, he attempted to unlawfully possess heroin for purpose of sale or supply.
Judge O'Donnell's direction to the jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to acquit Mr O'Sullivan came on day seven of the trial following legal submissions in the absence of the jury.
The trial arose from the discovery by Customs and Excise officers at Dublin Port of five slabs of heroin concealed in the base of a wall unit among a container load of furniture which came from the Netherlands in March 2003 and was destined for a Dún Laoghaire address.
The jury had been told that the customs officers replaced the heroin with a substitute substance in the wall unit. The container was resealed and placed under surveillance by gardaí.
The wall unit was collected from the Dún Laoghaire premises and taken to a lock-up store in Rathgar where gardaí arrested Mr O'Sullivan and another man previously also acquitted by direction of the court.
Mr Pádraig Dwyer, defending, had submitted that his client could not be found guilty of "attempting to possess heroin" when there was no heroin in the wall unit at the time of the Garda raid.
Mr Dwyer quoted legal rulings and submitted there was no evidence to link Mr O'Sullivan to the heroin discovered and removed by the Customs and Excise officials. There could be any number of innocent explanations for his client's presence at the premises when gardaí arrested him, he said.
Judge O'Donnell thanked the jury for its service in the hearing and released Mr O'Sullivan from the case.