Courts / Dublin / Report
"The modern era of drug dealing": pair to be sentenced over global Darknet operation
Summary
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing on 18 December 2015, Neil Mannion (34) and Richard O'Connor (34) pleaded guilty to possession of LSD, amphetamine and cannabis resin with intent to sell or supply. The drugs, valued at €143,000, were seized during a Garda raid on a business premises in south Dublin in October 2014. Mannion, a former Eircom employee, had set up an online drug‑dealing operation that used the darknet sites Silk Road and Agora, and was paid to post packages to customers in Japan, Argentina, the Czech Republic and the USA. O'Connor, a self‑employed film grip, handled the packaging and posting of the drugs. Both men had no prior convictions and were remanded in custody pending sentencing. The court heard that Mannion had quit a €36,000‑a‑year job to run the online business, while O'Connor was described as having a drug dependency at the time but was now clean.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: "The modern era of drug dealing": pair to be sentenced over global Darknet operation. Charges or matters: possession of LSD, amphetamine and cannabis resin with intent to sell or supply at Bank House Business Centre, South Circular Road on November 5 2014. Procedural stage: charge_or_pretrial
When:
- October 2014 Incident
- November 5 2014 Incident
- 2015-12-18 Publication
Why: Over his eleven garda interviews, Mannion explained that the operation was "just a market place like any other market place, like eBay". CNI source report
Case subjects
Accused
Charges: possession of LSD, amphetamine and cannabis resin with intent to sell or supply at Bank House Business Centre, South Circular Road on November 5 2014 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: He remanded both men in custody to then.
Accused
Charges: possession of LSD, amphetamine and cannabis resin with intent to sell or supply at Bank House Business Centre, South Circular Road on November 5 2014 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: He remanded both men in custody to then.
Places mentioned
- Mount Drummond Avenue
- Dublin
- Clonskeagh Road
- Bank House
- South Circular Road
- Silk Road
- Dublin
- Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Topics
Drugs Stage Charge Or Pretrial
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