Courts / Dublin / Report

Eight-year prison term for "trusted" cartel money launderer

Date
2018-03-15

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

Paul Carew, a 41‑year‑old Dublin man, was sentenced to eight years in prison for three money‑laundering offences involving over €600,000. On 27 August 2016 he was caught transporting €191,160 of criminal proceeds in a van at Liffey Valley Shopping Centre; two months earlier, on 24 June 2016, he was arrested at Dublin Auto Prestige Car Wash after placing a €350,000 cash box into a van. Carew had previously received a suspended sentence in 2014 for possessing almost €68,000 of criminal proceeds. He pleaded guilty to all three charges. Judge Martin Nolan, hearing the case at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, noted Carew's "blameless life" before his first offence and his willingness to reform, and set the sentence at eight years, back‑dated to 24 June 2017. The court heard that the money largely came from drug dealing and that Carew was described by Gardaí as a "trusted" courier within an organised crime cartel.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Eight-year prison term for "trusted" cartel money launderer. Charges or matters: all three offences. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

August 27, 2016 Incident
June 24 Incident
June 24, 2017 Other
August 2016 Other
June 24, 2016 Incident
2018-03-15 Publication

Why: Mr Bowman said his client's subsequent offending "was not necessarily motivated by avarice or greed", but because he "could not walk away" having lost over €67,000 in the first offence. CNI source report

Case subjects

Paul Carew

Defendant

Charges: all three offences (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: Passing sentence at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today, Judge Martin Nolan said Carew had committed the "very serious offence" of money laundering for some organised crime cartel. "Money is what it's all about to them. Judge Nolan said although the headline sentence was nine or ten years, he felt the appropriate sentence taking into account Carew's mitigating factors was eight years, backdated to June 24, 2017.