The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal against a five-year prison sentence imposed on Liam Casey for possessing a restricted firearm without a certificate.
In a judgment delivered on 6 December 2019, the court upheld the sentence imposed by Limerick Circuit Court on 25 October 2018. The firearm was a sawn-off pump-action shotgun that was not in working order. The judgment said it could not be the subject of a firearms certificate.
The offence came to light during a Garda surveillance operation at Casey’s home in Bruff, County Limerick, on 26 February 2017. The judgment said Casey shared the home with his sister. Casey, a co-accused identified as Mr Dundon, and a third accused were seen bringing the shotgun into the home. During a later search, Gardaí found it wrapped in clingfilm in an immediately neighbouring derelict premises. Similar material was found in the kitchen of the home.
After the three had remained at the home for a short time, Gardaí followed their vehicle. The judgment described a lengthy journey during which the driver spent much of the time driving dangerously. The vehicle was stopped and its occupants were arrested.
Casey pleaded guilty at trial. The firearm charge had been added to the indictment, while a separate charge of possession or control of a firearm in suspicious circumstances was discontinued by a nolle prosequi.
The sentencing judge treated the offence as at the top end of the scale, for which the maximum sentence was seven years. The judge set a seven-year headline sentence and reduced it to five years, having regard to mitigating factors, particularly the guilty plea. The Court of Appeal noted that Casey had several previous convictions, of which four were relevant, including earlier firearms convictions. It said relevant previous convictions were aggravating and found no error in the headline or final sentence. The appeal was dismissed.