Courts / Dublin / Report

Man to be sentenced for facilitating the importation of 10 million cigarettes

Date
2016-01-20

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

Graham Costigan, 42, of Santry Court, Santry Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to charges of evasion of excise duty and attempted evasion of excise duty on cigarettes dated September 16, 2013. The prosecution alleged that Costigan facilitated the importation of ten million cigarettes from the Netherlands by supplying necessary documentation, including packing lists, to clear the containers into Ireland. Detective Garda Paul Kane stated that Costigan was not the principal target of the operation but was the only one of six arrested men charged. He admitted to emailing documents to facilitate the transport of goods from Singapore to the Netherlands and then to Ireland, using a furniture company as a cover. The potential loss to the exchequer was estimated at over €4 million, though the State suffered no actual loss as the haul was seized. Costigan, who has no previous convictions, was described by his defense counsel as having been exploited and isolated. Judge Melanie Greally adjourned the case to Wednesday for sentence and remanded Costigan on continuing bail. The matter was adjourned and not concluded.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Man to be sentenced for facilitating the importation of 10 million cigarettes. Charges or matters: evasion of excise duty; attempted evasion of excise duty on cigarettes; evasion of excise duty and attempted evasion of excise duty on cigarettes on September 16, 2013. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

September 16, 2013 Incident
2016-01-20 Publication

Why: Mr Bowman said his client acknowledged that he got involved in a business transaction he was suspicious of and that he strongly suspected, because of the other men involved, that cigarettes would be in the container. CNI source report