Former British soldier Gary Monks jailed for 10 years over cocaine-import conspiracy

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Gary Monks was sentenced to 10 years in prison by the Special Criminal Court for conspiring to import drugs into Ireland. The charge concerned the period from 18 December 2024 to 15 January 2025. The proceedings were reported on 23 March 2026.

Monks pleaded guilty. Ms Justice Karen O’Connor said all seven men were part of a sophisticated international drug-smuggling operation and that their guilty pleas were significant because a trial would have been complicated and lengthy.

The court heard that Monks was a former British soldier who suffers from PTSD after serving in Afghanistan and Iraq, and that he was considered at high risk of reoffending. The other six men received prison sentences ranging from 10 years to 12 years.