Suspended sentence for €900k drug haul too lenient, Court of Appeal finds

A man from Ballyshannon, County Donegal, will face arrest if he fails to attend the Court of Appeal this week following the quashing of his suspended sentence for drug trafficking. Ciaran Lawn, aged 43, of Derrykillew, had received a three-year wholly suspended sentence from Dundalk Circuit Criminal Court in July 2021 after pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance for sale or supply. He was apprehended on 15 December 2019 near Ardee, County Louth, while transporting approximately €840,000 worth of cannabis and €59,000 of cocaine. The Director of Public Prosecutions appealed the sentence as unduly lenient. A three-judge panel, led by Court President Mr Justice George Birmingham, agreed and quashed the original sentence. The court found that wholly suspended terms require exceptional circumstances, which were absent in this case. A bench warrant has been issued for Lawn's arrest should he fail to attend court for re-sentencing.