Drug dealer sentenced after selling ecstasy to garda three times

A street drug dealer who sold ecstasy to an undercover garda three times after first approaching the officer at a Dublin nightclub, has been given a two and a half year suspended sentence.

Adam Nevin (27) of Lealand Close, Clondalkin, Dublin, who has since moved to Norway for work, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to three charges of having MDMA for sale or supply at Sin Nightclub, Clondalkin Community Centre and Clondalkin Shopping Centre on various dates in September 2012.

His 23 previous convictions include two for dealing drugs that were dealt with in the District Court.

"This demonstrates to me that he is either criminally inclined or not very bright," Judge Martin Nolan said.

Judge Nolan said he was impressed with Nevin’s attitude to work but added that he previously got a chance from the District Court. Judge Nolan had revoked Nevin’s bail and remanded him in custody for two weeks prior to sentencing him.

Garda Sean O’Neill told Dara Hayes BL, prosecuting, that gardaí­ set up an operation to deal with street dealing of MDMA in the Dublin 2 area and one officer was instructed to go to Sin Nightclub to see if anyone would approach him to buy drugs.

Nevin later asked the officer if he wanted “a light” and the man enquired if he knew anyone who had “any yokes”. Nevin offered to sell him four tablets and the garda paid €20.

Garda O’Neill said Nevin also gave the garda a mobile phone number to contact if he wanted any more tablets.

This number was again contacted on September 13th and following an exchange of texts, the same garda met with Nevin in Clondalkin Shopping Centre where he paid €60 for ten ecstasy tablets.

Almost two weeks later the garda again contacted the same number and said he was “looking for more yokes”. He was told it would be “no bother” to get 100 tablets for him and an arrangement was made to meet in the carpark of Clondalkin Community Centre.

Garda O’Neill said he and other officers positioned themselves in an unmarked garda car while the garda who had been in contact with Nevin was waiting in an official unmarked patrol car.

Nevin later arrived on a mountain bike and produced a bag of tablets which he said he wanted €300 for. The other garda­ moved in and Nevin threw the bag away before he was arrested.

The bag was later recovered and all the tablets were analysed and found to be MDMA.

Garda O’Neill agreed with Kenneth Kerins BL, defending, that Nevin told gardaí in interview that he was working to pay off a drug debt.

Mr Kerins told Judge Nolan that his client had no work at the time and had no way to finance his own drug habit.

He said he has since secured work in Norway and has enjoyed that and “getting out of the situation he found himself in Dublin”.