Courts / Dublin / Report

Dublin grandfather jailed for eight years over €500k cannabis haul

Date
2015-06-12

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

John Wilson, 56, of Oliver Bond Street, Dublin, was sentenced to eight years in prison at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for his involvement in a €528,000 cannabis operation. Judge Martin Nolan imposed the sentence, backdated to February of this year, stating Wilson deserved the same term as his co-accused. Wilson pleaded guilty to possessing 88kg of cannabis at Forrest Little Road, Swords, on August 8, 2008. He had previously taken a bench warrant in 2011 and was rearrested in England earlier this year after serving a five-year UK sentence for conspiring to supply cannabis. His co-accused, Joseph Douglas, 38, and James Griffin, 48, were both jailed for eight years for the same offence in 2011. Robert Wilson, 51, received a ten-year sentence in 2011, with the final two years suspended. Detective Sergeant Emmet Casserly testified that surveillance linked Wilson's phone and pickup truck to the loading of 370 slabs of cannabis into a van driven by Griffin. Defence counsel Sean Gillane SC argued for leniency, noting Wilson had "buried his head in the sand" by fleeing. The court accepted that a person above Wilson guided the operation. This sentencing concludes the proceedings for Wilson, while the matters for Douglas, Griffin, and Robert Wilson were finalised in 2011.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Dublin grandfather jailed for eight years over €500k cannabis haul. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

August 8, 2008 Incident
1975 to 1993 Other
2015-06-12 Publication

Case subjects

Joseph Douglas

Co Accused

Robert Wilson

Convicted Person

Outcome: Robert Wilson, of Oliver Bond Street, received a ten year sentence in 2011, with the final two years suspended for his role in the crime. Judge Nolan said Wilson deserved the same sentence as his co-accused and imposed an eight year sentence, backdated to February of this year.