Courts / Dublin / Report

Intoxicated, 'obstreperous' taxi passenger found carrying drugs

Date
2023-12-13

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

Craig Mooney, 28, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of possession of a controlled drug for sale or supply. Garda Kevin Kehoe recounted that on 25 January, a taxi driver reported an intoxicated, "obstreperous" passenger who could not be awakened. Gardaí removed Mooney from the taxi; he became abusive and was arrested. A search of the taxi revealed €725 worth of cocaine and 12 benzodiazepine tablets. A subsequent search of Mooney's residence on 2 February uncovered 2.3 g of cocaine (valued at €149) and 145 g of cannabis (valued at €2,914). Mooney has 32 prior convictions, including arson, road traffic offences and criminal damage. He has been in custody since February. Judge Martin Nolan, noting Mooney's intoxication and lack of wealth, imposed an 18‑month sentence back‑dated to February, taking mitigating factors into account.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Intoxicated, 'obstreperous' taxi passenger found carrying drugs. Charges or matters: two counts of possession of a controlled drug for sale or supply. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

January 25 Hearing Or Sentence
February 2 Incident
November 2017 Hearing Or Sentence
2023-12-13 Publication

Case subjects

Craig Mooney

Defendant

Charges: two counts of possession of a controlled drug for sale or supply (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: He also accepted that Mooney was handed a two-and-a-half-year sentence in November 2017 for arson and was released in 2019. Taking the mitigating features into account, Judge Martin imposed an 18-month sentence backdated to last February.