Courts / Limerick / Report

Well known Limerick restaurateur jailed for importing cannabis has appeal dismissed

Summary

The Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal against conviction by Patrick Scanlon, a 55-year-old restaurateur from West Limerick with an address on the Channel Island of Jersey. Scanlon had pleaded not guilty at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court to the possession and importation of cannabis worth €79,000 from Spain to a house in Pallaskenry, Co Limerick, on August 8, 2013. He was found guilty by a jury following a three-week trial and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by Mr Justice Caroll Moran on May 21, 2014. The centrepiece of his appeal, submitted by barrister Michael O'Higgins SC, was that his arrest was allegedly tainted by a period of illegal detention immediately before his arrest. O'Higgins argued that Scanlon was searched twice for drugs—once at the roadside and then at a garda station—and that no new reasonable cause had been formed for the second search. However, Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan, speaking for the three-judge court which included Mr Justice Alan Mahon and Mr Justice John Edwards, stated that it was not unusual for a person to be detained on the roadside and brought to a station for a further search. The court described the action as a continuous single search, noting that it did not matter that the process was described as a first or second search or carried out by two different gardaí. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed. Scanlon will appeal his sentence at a later date.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Well known Limerick restaurateur jailed for importing cannabis has appeal dismissed. Charges or matters: the possession and importation of cannabis worth €79,000 from Spain to a house in Pallaskenry, Co Limerick on August 8 2013. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Found guilty

When:

• August 8 2013 Incident
• May 21 2014 Incident
• 2015-10-29 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Drugs Stage Appeal

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Read the original CNI report