Chance traffic stop led gardaí to €380,000 stashed in secret compartment of woman’s car

By Francis Carroll, The Drogheda Independent

Gardaí who stopped a car initially on a documentation matter ended up discovering over €380,000 in a secret compartment in the vehicle, Dundalk Circuit Court has heard.

The Toyota Avensis was being driven by a 40-year-old woman who had been pressurised by one side in the Drogheda drugs feud to pick up bags near the border with Northern Ireland.

Sabrina Carolan, Rowan Heights, Drogheda, who has no previous convictions, was before the court for sentencing having signed a guilty plea to one count of money laundering.

She was remanded on continuing bail to next year for finalisation of the case with a warning that a custodial sentence was a possibility.

Gda Ryan Ward said that the car was stopped at Junction 9 of the M1 while travelling south on October 16, 2024.

The driver appeared nervous. The rear window was heavily tinted.

Ms Carolan gave permission for the officers to search the vehicle.

The rear boot space appeared smaller than it should be. A false compartment was found between the rear seats and the boot. Inside was a Minecraft backpack and other bags containing €380,675.

The defendant told investigators that she got a call that morning to pick up bags at the Carrickdale Hotel. CCTV footage showed her car in a carpark there and an exchange taking place.

She said that she didn’t know what was in the bags. She suspected it might be a small bit of drugs.

She admitted to gardaí smoking small amounts of “weed” and told them that she and her mother had been under threat.

The court heard that the accused had moved from Drogheda to Cork seven years previously where she worked in security at the airport for two years, and with people with autism for another two years.

An only child, she returned home because of her mother’s deteriorating health. Her grandmother was also dependent on her.

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She was pressurised to take part in this, and under threat to have the money couriered by her. She got no recompense for it.

Senior Counsel Roderick O’Hanlon, instructed by solicitor Paddy Goodwin, said that Ms Carolan was shocked at the amount of money in the bags.

She had purchased the car a short time previously and had no part in the adjustments to facilitate the compartment. She knew it was there when the money was put into it.

During several days in custody on remand she underwent detox and has remained drug free since getting bail.

She had not come to adverse garda attention since and is gainfully employed as a driver.

Adjourning the case to February 25 for a probation report, Judge Dara Hayes remarked that this was serious offending.

A car with a modification of a concealed compartment can only have been for the assistance of serious criminality.

The judge advised Sabrina Carolan to make arrangements for her family’s care.