Seven years for drug-transporting truck driver

A Kildare truck driver who transported heroin valued at €1m has been jailed for seven years by Judge Patrick McCartan.

Michael Stokes (aged 50) of St Dominic’s Park, Newbridge pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession for sale or supply of the heroin on August 9, 2007.

Sergeant Liam Hogan told prosecuting counsel, Mr Patrick McGrath BL, that gardaí observed the father of four driving his truck to the rear of a premises at Ballycoolin Industrial Estate in Blanchardstown where another man brought out a forklift and loaded two wooden crates onto it.

The Garda surveillance unit then followed the truck to Tougher’s Industrial Park in Newbridge where it was unloaded at 7.40 pm after Stokes and a companion were joined by two men in a Nissan Micra car.

Sgt Hogan said 10 half-kilo blocks of heroin were taken from a cooker in one of the crates and passed to Stokes who passed them to a man in the Micra.

Gardai later stopped the Micra at the M50 toll plaza while Stokes was arrested at his home. He said he initially believed he was collecting furniture but said he later thought he "was probably collecting cannabis".

Sgt Hogan said Stokes made no reply when asked about handing the heroin to the man in the Micra. He later said he owed cash and had no choice, but wouldn’t say anymore because it would "make it harder" on his family. "I was in a predicament to get out of a loophole."

Sgt Hogan agreed with defence counsel, Ms Aileen Donnelly SC (with Ms Caroline Biggs BL), that Stokes’ truck had been seized and he had been unable to do his work, delivering furniture.

He also agreed that Stokes said he was initially told the crates were imported by someone who said they were his personal possessions. That person had phoned to say he would collect the load and Stokes had signed dockets in his own name but was afraid to name this man.

Ms Donnelly submitted that Stokes became involved "under duress" because his son had been put under pressure to pay back the value of drugs seized from him.

Judge McCartan said he wasn’t "entirely convinced" about this claim. "I would have thought that if his son was the root cause, he would have said it to the gardaí."

He noted that Stokes had made an early guilty plea, had no criminal record to speak of and that this was his first involvement with drugs so the court had grounds to avoid the statutory minimum sentence of 10 years.

"But I must have regard to the fact that this is a very serious offence and that he played an active and vital role in the movement of a most pernicious drug which wreaks havoc wherever it goes."

Judge McCartan said he accepted that Stokes was "down the ladder" and made no money out of his activity that day and noted that he had a serious diabetic condition and high blood pressure.

He backdated the sentence to date of arrest and, when asked by Ms Donnelly to reconsider the seven-year sentence, the judge said he originally had a sentence of eight years in mind.