Courts / Dublin / Report

Fraudster jailed for stealing landscaping money

Summary

Gavin Smith, 33, was sentenced to two years in prison after stealing money from four clients for landscaping work that was never carried out. Between May and October 2022, he took payments of €4,400, €3,150, €2,500 and €5,000 from a woman, a man, another woman and an 87‑year‑old woman whose garden he had only worked on for half a day. Smith had previously received a suspended 21‑month sentence in January 2022 for a similar offence. He pleaded guilty to four counts of theft. The court noted that each victim spent weeks and months trying to recover their money, which was never repaid. Smith admitted to a cocaine addiction and to taking on too many jobs. Judge Martin Nolan said a custodial sentence was unavoidable given the prior suspended sentence and the victims' hardship. The sentence was imposed today.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Fraudster jailed for stealing landscaping money. Charges or matters: four counts of theft. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• October 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
• January 2022 Incident
• August 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
• November 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
• 2024-01-16 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Drugs Stage Sentence Theft

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Read the original CNI report