Former Dublin retail worker pleads guilty over €620k cannabis seizure at Shannon Airport

Gordon Deegan

A former sales associate with high-end retail brands in Dublin has entered a signed plea of guilty to his role in an alleged €620,000 cannabis drug seizure at Shannon Airport last November.

At Ennis District Court on Wednesday, Seán Grehan of Stradbrook Park, Blackrock, Dublin, signed a plea of guilty to the charge of the possession of cannabis with a value of €13,000 or more for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying the drugs at Shannon Airport on November 12th last contrary to Section 15A of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977.

Counsel for  Grehan, Sorcha Dinah Ní Néill Fulham, said that her client was going forward to the next sittings of Ennis Circuit Court on the signed plea on the basis that the other charges against Grehan will be struck out on the affirming of the plea in the circuit court.

Sgt Frank O’Grady told Judge Valerie Corcoran that this was the case.

Section 15(a) carries a mandatory minimum prison term of 10 years but a judge has the discretion to impose a lesser sentence in certain circumstances and only a very small portion of those convicted of Section 15(a) drug dealing offences do receive the 10 years in prison in the criminal courts.

Judge Corcoran extended the legal aid certificate for two counsel to represent Grehan at the circuit court.

Ní Néill Fulham said that her client does have consent to bail but is not in a position to take it up at the moment.

She said that Grehan remaining in prison can be seen as a mitigatory factor when it comes to sentencing at the circuit court.

Ní Néill Fulham said that the drugs at the subject of the charge “are of significant value”.

Grehan has been in custody since November 13th where he was remanded in custody with consent to bail on condition that he provide a €20,000 cash surety.

Grehan had been unable to provide the €20,000 surety to secure his release from prison and he was first charged with two alleged drugs offences arising from the airport seizure on November 12th last at Shannon airport.

The High Court has relaxed the bail conditions where the €20,000 cash surety has been reduced to €2,000.

At the contested bail hearing on November 13th last, gardaí objected to bail and Garda Kevin Molloy said that it will be alleged that a passenger from an inbound Boston flight, Seán Grehan was detected by customs officers to have two 20kg suitcases at Shannon Airport on November 12th containing 31kg of cannabis with an estimated street value of €620,000.

Garda Molloy said that it will be alleged that Grehan was due to pass the two suitcases to another person after getting through customs at Shannon airport.

Ní Néill Fulham told the bail hearing that her client is a father of two children, aged seven and five, and has worked as a sales associate for a number of high end retail brands in Dublin.

In the case, Grehan was initially charged with at Shannon airport on November 12th having in his possession, cannabis for the purpose of sale or supply contrary to Section 15 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977.

Grehan was also initially charged with having in his possession cannabis on November 12th at Shannon airport contrary to Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act.

Judge Corcoran further remanded Grehan in custody with consent to bail on a signed guilty plea to appear at Ennis Circuit Court on April 14th.

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