Street vendor caught in Louth with 150,000 illegal cigarettes

A Dublin street vendor who was caught with 150 thousand cigarettes without a stamp, after he caught the attention of members of the Dundalk Roads Policing Unit as he appeared to be unfamiliar with the area, has been sentenced at Dundalk Circuit Court.

50-year-old Garrett Thomas of Islandbridge, Kilmainham pleaded guilty to attempting to keep tobacco products for sale or supply on December 5th 2020.

The court had previously heard that when he was stopped at the Faughart roundabout at Junction 18, Dundalk North, the defendant told gardaí he had been to Newry to buy Christmas lights but he had not made any purchases.

When asked what was in the van, he said he  was carrying cleaning products and when the garda inspected the back of it, he found 15 large sealed boxes.

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The defendant claimed he had bought them on the roadside from an elderly woman but could give no details about her or the location of the purchase.

The cigarettes were worth €105,000 and between VAT and excise duty the loss to the State would have been over €82,000.

Judge Dara Hayes had adjourned the case for a community service assessment to be carried out and had directed that he make a charitable donation of €1,000 each be made to the Turas Counselling Centre and St Gerard’s Athletic Club in Dundalk.

After he was subsequently told only €750 had been paid to each of them and the judge adjourned finalising the matter for a week, but warned Mr Thomas that the community service he had previously indicated was in lieu of a custodial sentence and not a suspended one.

Last Friday a receipt from Turas and an email confirmation from the athletic club were handed into the court. 

Judge Hayes noted the defendant, who acts a a full time carer for his mother, had no previous convictions, has not come to subsequent adverse attention and had demonstrated his remorse with the charitable donations.  

He sentenced him to perform 240 hours community service within 18 months, in lieu of a 21 months sentence but impressed upon the defendant that he would serve the jail term if he fails to comply with the community service order as directed.