Courts / Dublin / Report
Army corporal help launder over €6.6m in drug cash
Summary
A 36‑year‑old corporal in the Irish Defence Forces, Richard Kearney, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possessing €25,000 of suspected drug‑proceeds on 6 May 2022. Garda Vincent Jaffray presented evidence that a phone seized from Kearney's rented flat contained communications with known drug dealers, revealing that he had laundered €6.6 million and £250,000 between April 2021 and May 2022. The search uncovered €10,455 in cash hidden in a bed frame and €15,000 wrapped in clingfilm in a freezer. Kearney admitted he was the sole occupant of the flat and that the phone was his. Bank‑statement analysis showed no legitimate source for the money found at his home. The court noted Kearney's lack of prior convictions, his family responsibilities, and his role as a corporal. Judge Martin Nolan, after considering mitigating factors, imposed a headline sentence of six years, reduced to three years.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Army corporal help launder over €6.6m in drug cash. Charges or matters: having €25,000, knowing or being reckless as to whether it was the proceeds of crime at an address in Fernwood Lawn, Tallaght on May 6, 2022; possession of the physical cash that was found during the search. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- May 6, 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
- April 2021 Other
- May 2022 Other
- Christmas 2020 Incident
- 2025-01-29 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: having €25,000, knowing or being reckless as to whether it was the proceeds of crime at an address in Fernwood Lawn, Tallaght on May 6, 2022; possession of the physical cash that was found during the search (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: He acknowledged that Kearney pleaded guilty to possession of the physical cash that was found during the search but said the full facts, as disclosed during the sentence hearing, detailed phone evidence which demonstrated that Kearney was involved in "very substantial money laundering".
Places mentioned
Topics
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