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Jail for tobacco smuggler caught with 100k untaxed cigarettes
Summary
Nicolae Dulea, 36, of Tyrellstown, Dublin, was jailed for 18 months after pleading guilty to non‑payment of duty on 40,000 untaxed cigarettes and to keeping 60,600 cigarettes and 4.5 kg of fine‑cut tobacco without tax stamps. The cigarettes were discovered in a pallet that a detection dog flagged on 11 November 2021; the pallet, listed as children's playthings, contained two boxes of untaxed cigarettes totalling a €24,580 loss to the State. A separate search of a storage container rented to Prunesso Europe Ltd on the same day uncovered 60,600 cigarettes and 4.5 kg of tobacco, a €38,198.75 loss. The total loss to the State was €61,788. Dulea had two prior convictions, the most recent in 2013. He claimed to be a wholesaler of dried fruits and said he was collecting the boxes for a friend. He was cooperative, pleaded early, and his wife attended court.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Jail for tobacco smuggler caught with 100k untaxed cigarettes. Charges or matters: one count of non-payment of duty on 40,000 cigarettes on November 12, 2021 at Weatherwell Business Park, Clondalkin; one count of keeping tobacco products – 60,600 cigarettes and 4.5kg of fine cut tobacco – without the appropriate tax stamp affixed on the same date, at Rosemount Business Park, Dublin 11. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- November 12, 2021 Other
- November 11, 2021 Hearing Or Sentence
- November 12 Other
- 2024-01-29 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: one count of non-payment of duty on 40,000 cigarettes on November 12, 2021 at Weatherwell Business Park, Clondalkin; one count of keeping tobacco products – 60,600 cigarettes and 4.5kg of fine cut tobacco – without the appropriate tax stamp affixed on the same date, at Rosemount Business Park, Dublin 11 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Imposing sentence, Judge Elva Duffy said Dulea's previous relevant convictions are an aggravating feature of the case as they involved "identical offending behaviour". Judge Duffy imposed an 18 month prison sentence.
Places mentioned
- Cruise Park Drive
- Dublin
- Weatherwell Business Park
- Rosemount Business Park
- Dublin
- Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Topics
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