Nearly every room in Louth house contained cannabis plants, court told
Almost the entire of a house in Dundalk was given over to cannabis cultivation, the circuit court has been told.
When Gardaí raided the property at Glenwood, Dublin Road, they found €250,000 drugs between plants and vacuum packs of cannabis ready for distribution.
A 53-year-old grandfather from Vietnam who was working in the house appeared before Judge Dara Hayes for sentencing.
Thuan Van Tran had been living there for some months before being arrested when Gardaí searched the premises in the early hours of the morning.
Evidence was given that he was brought to Ireland in a container on a ferry.
The defendant had signed guilty pleas to possession and possession for sale or supply of cannabis, possession of cannabis valued €13,000 or more for sale or supply and cultivation of cannabis plants.
Gda Michelle Clancy said that at 3am on July 17, 2025, Gardaí searched the house.
They found heat lamps, fans and an irrigation system and plants in every room except for a dismantled downstairs bathroom used as sleeping quarters and the upstairs bathroom.
The officers seized 240 cannabis plants valued €800 each, €192,000 in total; and 2.7kgs of vacuum packed cannabis worth €55,432 or €20 per gram.
Mr Tran was arrested. He had €200 on him.
Gda Clancy said that he co-operated with the investigation. He didn’t know who owned the house.
He said that a man and a woman would call monthly, and he would engage with them. Furthermore, he had no other details. He had keys but no longer held his travel documents.
The court heard that the accused, who has no previous convictions, wasn’t paid for the first month because he was learning.
He left the house on only three occasions and once, when trying to go into town, was “intercepted” and brought back by one of the people involved in the operation.
He thought he had engaged with an “agency” for work after being put in touch with it by friends. He did construction in the UK.
Barrister Eoghan Fagan added that his client had four children and four grandchildren.
When his wife passed away in 2024, he travelled for work. He was moved from Russia to Ukraine, Germany, France, the UK and finally to Ireland, the bulk of the travel in a container.
The defendant got €200 once and otherwise was not paid. He was provided with meat and rice once a week.
Mr Fagan continued that he was instructed not to leave the house in Glenwood.
He was a “small cog in a large machine”.
Mr Tran, who had the assistance of an interpreter, was attending English classes in prison and working in the laundry.
Concurrent three-year terms were imposed on the two most serious charges and backdated to July 18 last, with the possession and possession for sale or supply offences taken into consideration.
Judge Hayes said there was no evidential basis to suspend any portion.
A destruction order was made for the drugs.