Samuel Devlin’s explosives conviction upheld on appeal

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

Samuel Devlin’s conviction for possessing the explosive substance PETN was upheld by the Court of Appeal on 6 July 2017. He had been sentenced to six years’ imprisonment by the Special Criminal Court on 6 April 2016 for possessing PETN at Finnstown House Hotel, Lucan, on 11 May 2014.

The appeal challenged the search warrant, DNA evidence and the trial court’s finding that occupation of the hotel suite amounted to possession. The Court of Appeal rejected those arguments and dismissed the appeal, finding ample evidence to support the conviction and no basis to regard the trial or decision as unsafe.