AN ANTIQUES dealer and gambling hall operator, Christopher O'Connell, has been jailed for eight years for importing cannabis resin worth £7 million.
He was found guilty by a 10 to two majority by a jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court last Friday of three charges arising out of the discovery of the cannabis by customs officers at Courtmacsherry, Co Cork, on July 23rd, 1991.
O'Connell (51), married with one daughter, and with addresses at Merrion Village, Dublin, and The Mews, Montenotte, Cork, was convicted of smuggling cannabis resin to sell or supply, unlawful importation and unlawful possession of the drug.
The jury took three and a half hours to reach its decisions after a five day trial.
Garage owner and former sailor Mr John Ryan (52) of Atlantic Villas, Weaver's Point, Co Cork, was found not guilty of all charges and was discharged by Judge Dominic Lynch. He had denied the charges and gave evidence in his defence.
O'Connell in evidence claimed he had been set up by either a US business contact he named as Jeremy White or by an Irish American diver he named as Frank Sullivan. Sullivan had asked him to bring back gold coins to Ireland and he never suspected the parcels contained cannabis, he said.
Det Garda James O'Riordan told Mr Paul O'Higgins SC (with Mr Patrick McCarthy), prosecuting, that gardai were satisfied Mr Paddy O'Sullivan of Bandon was not the person named by the defendant as "Frank Sullivan".
Det Garda O'Riordan said Mr O'Sullivan was a respected businessman in Ban don who was also known locally as "Frank Sullivan". This man had never met O'Connell and had been embarrassed by the defendant's claim.
Gardai have also contacted the widow of a well known deep sea diver, Mr John Light, mentioned by O'Connell. She told them that her husband had never taken gold coins or such material from the Lusitania as alleged by O'Connell in his evidence last Friday.
Det Garda O'Riordan said the haul was worth £6.9 million. There had been two major importations of cannabis in the Cork coastal area before this one in 1991. One was of 1,200 kilograms and the second of 300 kilograms. Nobody was charged.
Since 1991 there had been five major drug importations totalling 6,040 kilograms. The defendants had not been involved in any of these crimes, he said.
Mr Barry White SC (with Mr Luigi Rea), defending, said his client's age would make it difficult for him to serve a prison sentence. He might also have to serve it in solitary confinement for his own safety as it had emerged last week he was under armed protection.
Mr White said O'Connell had inherited his business from his father and grandfather. He had been foolish and had brought shame on his wife and daughter as well as on himself. This trial had been hanging over him since 1991 and in April 1995 he was shot just before the trial was due to begin.
Judge Lynch said he had to consider that the maximum sentences for the offences were respectively terms of seven years, 14 years and life imprisonment. He also took into consideration previous sentences by the courts for similar offences.
Judge Lynch recalled the parameters of sentencing laid down by Mr Justice Walsh in a previous case.
He imposed two concurrent terms of eight years and one of four years to date from April 27th, 1996. Leave to appeal conviction and sentence was refused.