Courts / Dublin / Report

Addict's 5-year sentence over €4m drug hub too lenient, State says

Date
2020-10-08

Stage
Appeal

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

In October 2020 the State appealed a five‑year jail term imposed on 46‑year‑old Mark O'Dwyer, who had pleaded guilty in July 2017 to possession of drugs for sale or supply at a Ballyfermot Drive address. The drugs, worth €4,170,932, were found in a garage in a Dublin housing estate, described by Gardaí as a large‑scale drug distribution hub. O'Dwyer had 41 prior convictions and also pleaded guilty to three charges of possessing stun guns. He was recruited on the day with a promised €1,500 that never materialised. The appeal cited the case of Stephen Sarsfield, who received a seven‑year sentence for the same offence, as a comparator. The DPP argued that O'Dwyer's five‑year sentence was unduly lenient and a substantial departure from sentencing norms, and that the judge erred in granting an excessive reduction from the mandatory minimum of ten years.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Addict's 5-year sentence over €4m drug hub too lenient, State says. Charges or matters: possession of the drugs for sale or supply at an address on Ballyfermot Drive, on July 17, 2017; three charges of possessing stun guns on the same occasion; the same offence and had previously been jailed for seven years by the same judge who later sentenced O'Dwyer. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

July 17, 2017 Incident
July 2018 Incident
2020-10-08 Publication

Why: Counsel explained that O'Dwyer had 'significantly impaired intellectual functioning'. CNI source report

Case subjects

Mark O'Dwyer

Accused

Charges: possession of the drugs for sale or supply at an address on Ballyfermot Drive, on July 17, 2017; three charges of possessing stun guns on the same occasion; the same offence and had previously been jailed for seven years by the same judge who later sentenced O'Dwyer (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: Judge Martin Nolan imposed the five-year sentence in July 2018. The other man, Stephen Sarsfield (41) of New Street Gardens in Dublin, pleaded guilty to the same offence and had previously been jailed for seven years by the same judge who later sentenced O'Dwyer.; Mr Justice John Edwards, presiding, with Justice Patrick McCarthy and Justice Úna Ni Raifeartaigh reserved judgment.

Stephen Sarsfield

Background Person

Charges: the same offence and had previously been jailed for seven years by the same judge who later sentenced O'Dwyer (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: Stephen Sarsfield (41) of New Street Gardens in Dublin, pleaded guilty to the same offence and had previously been jailed for seven years by the same judge who later sentenced O'Dwyer. Sarsfield's sentence was last year increased by three years by the Court of Appeal.; Mr Justice John Edwards, presiding, with Justice Patrick McCarthy and Justice Úna Ni Raifeartaigh reserved judgment.