A man jailed for 17 years in connection with a £47 million cocaine seizure appealed against his sentence in the Court of Criminal Appeal yesterday.
In the drug-smuggling operation an English national, Gordon Richards, was "a small cog in a big wheel" and had expressed deep remorse about his involvement, the court was told.
The court reserved its decision.
Gordon Richards (51), who was brought up by relatives in the West Indies, was jailed for 17 years at Cork Circuit Criminal Court in September 1996 after he admitted possession of cocaine with intent to supply. The charges arose out of the seizure of £47 million worth of cocaine at Cork Harbour.
Three other foreign nationals accused of drug-related offences were acquitted in February 1997.
Judge Anthony Murphy had made an order that there should be no media reporting other than the fact that the trial was proceeding in open court, the names and addresses of the accused and the nature of the charges.
The judge's order was challenged by The Irish Times and a number of other media organisations, and last month the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the media challenge.
At the Court of Criminal Appeal yesterday, Mr Brendan Grogan, counsel for Richards, said he was appealing against the severity of the sentence. He would not be due for release until 2009, when He would be aged about 62. Mr Grogan said Richards was sent to relatives in the West Indies when he was three because his mother was no longer able to care for him. He appeared to have been affected when he later discovered that the person he had thought was his mother was not. He had been a boat-builder all his life. Owing to misfortunes the lifestyle he had built up was lost in a hurricane in the West Indies.
Counsel said Richards had led an unblemished life before he got involved in the drug-smuggling operation. There was nothing to say he was the prime mover. A boat had been chartered and he later found men with guns were involved. Threats were made against his partner and her child. He went along with the venture because of the threats.
Mr Grogan said Richards had been offered either $100,000 or $400,000 for his participation. There was no evidence to show he had received that amount. He had received $1,000 for expenses.
While it would appear that Richards was the nominal skipper of the ship, there was another person directing operations. Richards had admitted involvement within minutes of being interviewed by gardai.
Mr Grogan asked the court to take into account his client's foreign nationality, the state of his health and the fact that he was unable to contact his girlfriend, who had returned with her child to Colombia.
Mr Richards's health was deteriorating and he feared he would not survive his sentence, counsel added. His asthma was affected by the Irish climate. But, despite his difficulties, he was working productively in the prison workshop and was selling model ships and cars to prison officers.
Mr Denis Vaughan Buckley, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said the drug seizure was one of the largest in the State. If the drugs had got loose they would have caused "havoc".