A cattle dealer from Cork and his company, who pleaded guilty to the illegal movement of animals, have been ordered to pay £22,000 in fines, expenses and costs.
Patrick Kelleher of Ashgrove House, Cork Road, Macroom, Co Cork, was also given a 10month suspended sentence at Clonakilty District Court yesterday afternoon for assaulting a Department of Agriculture official in May 1999.
Kelleher's sentence was suspended on condition that he pay £5,000 to the Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Walsh, and £2,000 to the Garda benevolence fund.
Kelleher, the managing director of Macroom Livestock Buyers, pleaded guilty to 13 charges involving the illegal movement of animals in Bandon District Court on Monday. The breaches of the Animal Disease Eradication regulations took place in 1998 and 1999.
Judge James O'Connor warned Kelleher about his future behaviour as he adjourned three further summonses until May 2003.
The judge told him that Department of Agriculture officials were to be allowed "unhindered access" to his farm and said that any breach of this would be looked on severely.
Kelleher is one of the most prominent cattle dealers in Munster and buys more than 20,000 animals, mainly for export, every year. His company employs seven full-time staff and a number of part-time workers and is one of the more prolific dealerships in the region.
The offences took place when the Department was spending more than £2.5 million destroying 50 cattle herds in an effort to eliminate brucellosis from the Macroom area. In 1997 there was a disastrous outbreak of brucellosis in the area and Kelleher's whole operation became infected.
More than 200 farmers in the area had their herds restricted which impeded their ability to do business.
Kelleher pleaded guilty on Monday to moving his animals before they had passed blood tests to show that they were 30 days free of brucellosis. He had moved his animals to holdings which had been restricted, and flouted regulations after restrictions were lifted.
He was charged after an intensive investigation by the Department's special investigations unit.
The defendant expressed remorse about breaching the regulations and agreed to pay the fines.