Man jailed for cannabis distribution after house raid

A man who previously served five years in the UK for the importation of cocaine has been jailed for the distribution of herbal cannabis in Ireland.

Martin Whelan (31) was in the kitchen of a house when gardaí raided it and found about 10 kg of cannabis.

Whelan, of The Square, Larch Hill, Coolock, Co Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of the drugs for sale or supply at Old Church Avenue, Clondalkin, Co Dublin on February 25th, 2014.

Judge Martin Nolan jailed Whelan for five and a half years. The judge noted that Whelan has a previous conviction in the UK for his part in a serious drug running operation there.

Garda Paul Maxwell told Maurice Coffey BL, prosecuting, that during a search of the house they found boxes and vacuum pack bags containing cannabis herb. The estimated street value of all the drugs seized was €200,860.

Whelan and the sole occupier of the house, Paul Carroll (38), were in the kitchen at the time of the raid and the garda said they were in the process of weighing out and bagging the drugs.

A weighing scales and a drugs “tick list” with names and amounts on it were also seized.

Whelan admitted that he was collecting cannabis to distribute to a number of people. He said he was due to collect 2.5 kg, which had an estimated value of €50,000.

Drug debt

Whelan told gardaí­ he owed a drug debt and had been involved in the operation since the previous Christmas in order to pay this off.

In 2008, a UK court imposed a 10 year sentence on Whelan for the importation of 16 kg of cocaine. He was released in July 2013 after serving five years.

On Monday, the judge imposed a sentence of three and a half years on Carroll. He backdated the sentence to February 2014.

Michael Lynn SC, defending, said that there was no evidence that Whelan was living a high life or had any assets. The judge agreed that Whelan was at the lower level of the drugs trade.