Teenager had €91k lodged in his Cork bank account after Snapchat approach by crime gang

Accused was contacted by organised crime group and asked for his account to be used in exchange for a small payment, court heard

Gardaí identified a number of communications between the defendant and the ‘controller’ in the organised crime group, court told. Picture: Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images

A 19-year-old “money mule” had €91,000 diverted to his bank account in Cork and he was then taken to Dublin by a criminal organisation to withdraw €65,000 over a three-day period in Dublin.

Detective Garda Seán Sheehan of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau testified the accused man, Kenoly Ugbodu, made 30 withdrawals through currency exchange bureaus in Dublin over a period of 72 hours and a further €10,000 was spent in making purchases at mobile phone stores.