Man caught in North Cork with 'Christmas present' had almost €13,000 in cash in car

Defendant pleads guilty to money-laundering charge

Gardaí said the package contained €12,700 in €50 notes.

Gardaí became suspicious of a package in the back of BMW car in North Cork on Christmas Eve. The driver told them it was just a present he was bringing to someone but it turned out to be €12,700 in €50 notes covered in wrapping paper.

Garda Cormac Axson outlined this evidence at the sentencing hearing for Jordan Von Ronn who pleaded guilty to a charge of money-laundering.

Garda Axson said the incident came to light at 10.40pm on December 24, 2022, at Glanworth, Co Cork.

Gardaí signalled for him to stop and the 30-year-old driver did so. Asked about a parcel on the back seat, he said: “It is just a present.” 

Garda Axson said: “But as he said this he became very nervous and I believed it may have contained controlled substances. I asked him to exit the vehicle. It was a pharmacy bag wrapped in wrapping paper, wrapped in Sellotape. It contained €12,700 in €50 notes.

“I located three mobile phones in the car. He said the money was from furniture and a car he had sold.

“There was a large volume of Snapchat messages consistent with the sale of controlled drugs.

“During detention he was interviewed and claimed it was from selling a black BMW. He agreed he had no income and no social welfare. We established that he did sell the car but he was not paid for it until after Christmas Eve when he was stopped.” 

Defence barrister Elaine Audley said the defendant did not accept all of the evidence that was given. Judge Sheehan said he would allow the defendant to change his plea to not guilty to money-laundering if he so wished but added: “The prosecution evidence is that the gardaí found he had lots of messages consistent with drug-dealing and that the cash which was neatly wrapped up was the proceeds of crime.”

 Ms Audley said after a brief adjournment that the defendant was not changing his guilty plea to the money-laundering charge.

Judge Sheehan decided to adjourn sentencing further until February 26, 2026.

“If the guards are happy with his conduct between now and February 2026 I think a non-custodial sentence could be considered but it is significant money-laundering (arising from drug-dealing). That is a very serious matter,” Judge Sheehan said.

The judge noted that “the probation service are not at all impressed with him". 

However, the judge expressed the hope that this might change by February, “now that Mr Von Ronn has seen the light.”