Courts / Limerick / Report

Limerick man has €140k drugs conviction quashed

Date
2024-10-15

Stage
Appeal

Primary locality
Limerick

Summary

In a decision by the Court of Appeal on 15 October 2024, Noel Noonan's conviction for possessing drugs worth €137,858 was quashed. Noonan, aged 46, had been jailed for eight and a half years after a Toyota Corolla he was driving was stopped on the N7 near Kildare. The vehicle was not taxed, uninsured and Noonan could not produce a licence. Garda Dave Farragher seized the car and found Xannax and amphetamine in the boot. Noonan denied knowing of the drugs. The appeal argued that a phone call from an inspector, relayed to Farragher, was hearsay and should not have been admitted. The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge's admission of this hearsay evidence was flawed and prejudicial, and therefore overturned the conviction, sending the case back to Naas Circuit Court for further proceedings.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Limerick man has €140k drugs conviction quashed. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Convicted

When:

June 19, 2023 Incident
2024-10-15 Publication

Why: He was stopped because the Automatic Number Plate Recognition System installed on the garda's patrol car detected that the vehicle which he was driving was not taxed. CNI source report