Father who sold drugs to undercover gardaí jailed

A father of four who twice sold cocaine to undercover gardaí has been sentenced to two years in prison by Judge Desmond Hogan at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Miguel Pintos (27), Coultry Way, Ballymun pleaded guilty to possession of €300 worth of the drugs on September 28 and October 3, 2006.

Mr James Dwyer BL, defending, told Judge Hogan that his client was now drug free. He said Pintos first started taking "ecstasy" and cannabis before moving onto cocaine.

Judge Hogan suspended the last 12 months of the sentence after giving Pintos credit for his guilty plea and co-operation with gardaí.

Garda Trevor Bulger told Mr Paul Carroll BL, prosecuting, that undercover officers were given a mobile number to call under a garda operation called "clean streets". They rang the number and arranged a meeting at which Pintos sold them €200 worth of cocaine.

The following week they rang the same number and arranged a meeting in the same place where Pintos again sold them a bag of cocaine worth €100.

Gda Bulger said that Pintos’ home was searched in December 2006 and gardai discovered €1,650 cash in three different locations.

Pintos had 22 previous convictions which mainly involved road traffic offences and one drug charge.