Courts / Louth / Report

"Cog in the machine" had €1.3m in drugs

Date
2018-07-18

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Louth

County
Louth

Summary

Eoin Morrow, 38, a Louth bricklayer, will be sentenced for possessing cannabis and prescription drugs worth €1.38 million. Gardaí set up a surveillance operation on a Scania truck that met Morrow's Volkswagen Jetta. They observed Morrow and truck driver John Needham, 31, removing boxes from the truck onto a trolley bound for a storage unit in Newcourt Business Park. A subsequent search uncovered four large cardboard boxes of cannabis resin and 29 boxes of Zopiclone tablets. The 96 kg of cannabis was valued at €580,200 and the 400,000 Zopiclone pills at €800,000. Morrow pleaded guilty to possessing cannabis resin and supplying a prescription‑only drug. He has 15 previous convictions, including assault, burglary and theft. He fled to Europe after a bench warrant was issued but returned and surrendered. Needham also pleaded guilty to the same drug offences and was sentenced to eight years earlier this month.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: "Cog in the machine" had €1.3m in drugs. Charges or matters: possessing cannabis resin and supplying a prescription-only drug at St Margaret's Road, Finglas, Dublin on July 25, 2017; the same drugs offences and was sentenced to eight years for his role earlier this month. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

July 25, 2017 Incident
June 2016 Other
2018-07-18 Publication

Why: Mr Orange told Judge Melanie Greally that people who benefit in the drugs trade do not need to handle the substances "because other people are susceptible to threats and inducements and will do the dirty work for them". CNI source report

Case subjects

Eoin Morrow

Defendant

Charges: possessing cannabis resin and supplying a prescription-only drug at St Margaret's Road, Finglas, Dublin on July 25, 2017; the same drugs offences and was sentenced to eight years for his role earlier this month (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: She remanded him in continuing custody until November.

John Needham

Defendant

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: She remanded him in continuing custody until November.