A man who was caught transporting cannabis valued at almost €500,000 after a garda spotted him driving without a seatbelt and talking on his mobile phone has been jailed for six years.
John Rooney (28) had agreed to courier the drugs in return for €1,000 to help pay his loans and credit card debts.
Rooney, of Foxhill Avenue, Baldoyle pleaded guilty to possession of the drugs for sale or supply at Ridgewood Green, Swords on December 5th, 2009. He has two previous convictions.
Judge Martin Nolan at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court said Rooney was “a minor player in a larger drugs operation, a mere transporter” and imposed a six year jail term.
Garda James Carolan told Elva Duffy BL, prosecuting, that he was on routine patrol in Swords when he noticed Rooney driving with no seatbelt on whilst talking on his mobile phone.
He said he signalled the car to pull over and it did so. When he looked in the driver’s window he could see brown cardboard boxes and black plastic bags with slabs of cannabis resin visible in them.
After speaking to Rooney he radioed for backup out of his earshot and when gardaí searched the van they found cannabis resin to a total value of €480,000.
Rooney was arrested and told gardaí he was to be paid €1,000 for transporting the drugs.
Garda Carolan agreed with defence counsel, Cathal McGreal BL, that it was a chance stopping and was “very amateurish and not at all smart”. He agreed he was “not a hardened criminal”.
He agreed Rooney told them he had debts and also need money for Christmas.
Mr McGreal said Rooney was unemployed at the time of the offences and had a number of loans and credit card debt totaling about €7,500 which led to his involvement in the offence.
He asked the court to take into account his early guilty plea, the fact he had put his hands up straight away and was otherwise of good character.
He submitted that the legislation imposing a 10- year presumptive minimum sentence was not primarily intended to be used against “nobodies and disposables” such as his client.