Drug dealer jailed after telling woman her son would be raped and driven over due to debt

Mark 'Fishy' Salmon pleaded guilty to threatening to kill people, of supplying cocaine worth €35,280, and possessing cash and valuables that were the proceeds of crime

Mark 'Fishy' Salmon had case heard before the non-jury Special Criminal Court, and not in the ordinary jury courts, on foot of a decision by the Director of Public Prosecutions. File picture: IrishPhotoDesk.ie

A drug dealer who told a woman that her son would be raped and driven over by a car has been sentenced to prison for 10 years.

The 33-year-old man, who has two children of his own, warned the mother another time that her son would be found “hanging from a rope” if she didn’t pay his drug debt.

Mark 'Fishy' Salmon, of Kilbarron Avenue, Kilmore, north Dublin, had pleaded guilty to threatening to kill people, of supplying cocaine worth €35,280, and possessing cash and valuables that were the proceeds of crime.

Speaking after the sentencing, investigating gardaí welcomed the 10-year-sentence and urged people suffering drug-related intimidation to contact them, saying they will be treated with “utmost confidence”.

Salmon’s case was heard before the non-jury Special Criminal Court, and not in the ordinary jury courts, on foot of a decision by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The three-judge court previously ordered that the victims not be identified after hearing that they remain in fear for their safety.

In the first case, a son told his mother he owed a drug debt of €40,000-€50,000 to 'Fishy'. This man wanted to meet the mother and, in January 2024, she did so — where he told her the debt was now €157,000.

He gave her a month to pay but within a week or so began either calling her, leaving voice messages, or texting, telling her to pay.

In one communication he said he would get “junkies to rape” her son and would drive over him in a car. If he still wasn’t dead he would “put a bullet in his head”.

The mother described Salmon as “like a demon”.

In one message, Salmon even threatened her youngest son, who had no involvement in drugs.

The mother managed to pay over €3,500. In a victim impact statement she said she suffered depression and anxiety and that she “lives on her nerves”.

Initially, she said she had an over-reliance on alcohol and medication and was lonely and isolated. Her son left the country.

Mr Justice Patrick McGrath said Salmon had “preyed” on the mother, with “particularly vicious and ongoing” threats to kill two of her sons. He said Salmon’s intent was to “strike terror and exert maximum pressure on a wholly innocent woman”.

In the second case, a mother said she suffered a total financial loss of €29,500, including €7,000 towards a drug debt of her son’s, criminal damage, and loss of earnings from stopping work to take care of her family.

In her victim impact statement, she said she had fostered babies, including what are called “methadone babies” — newborns of heroin-using mothers. She was looking after one such baby in the months after the intimidation started.

The woman said her eldest son had to leave the country and she was forced to leave her home. She said fear and anxiety levels were high in the family and that she was almost always paranoid.

Mr Justice McGrath said Salmon had engaged in threats and intimidation against this family, which had a “devastating” effect on them.

The court previously heard from Detective Sergeant Domhnall O’Connell of Operation Fógra, a dedicated drug-related intimidation unit in Dublin North Division.

He said that when they searched of the homes of Salmon's girlfriend's house and parents, they seized various designer watches by Armani, Michael Kors, Louis Vuitton, Rolex, and Tag as well as luxury bags.

Gardaí have placed an initial estimate of around €30,000 on these valuables.

Gardaí also carried out a forensic analysis of Salmon's bank accounts and various expenses, finding that he had unexplained income of €24,000 in 2022 and about €60,000 in 2023.

Mr Justice McGrath, sitting with Judge Sarah Berkeley and Judge Fiona Lydon, outlined an initial headline sentence of 16 years for the three offences.

Given the early stage of the accused’s guilty pleas a 25% discount applied, reducing it to 12. He said that taking in lack of relevant previous convictions, testimonials, and rehabilitation efforts, he brought the final sentence down to 10 years.

Salmon, in custody for the last year, would expect, with remission, to be out in six-and-a-half years.

Speaking outside court, Chief Superintendent Dave Kennedy, who led the investigation, said Salmon had carried out acts of violence and intimidation of families across the Dublin Metropolitan North Division between 2022 to 2024.

He said: “These offences related to drug related intimidation and can affect all parts of society.” 

He added: “I would like to make an appeal to anyone who is suffering from intimidation or threats of violence please make contact with An Garda Síochána or the National Drive Project where you will be provided support, advice, and guidance and treated with the utmost confidence.”

 Operation Fógra is the most active garda drug-related intimidation investigation in the country. Since 2023 it has carried out 45 investigations and arrested 39 people.

Thirty-three of them have been charged with over 190 offences, 13 have been convicted so far and 20 people are still before the courts.

The National Drive (Drug-Related Intimidation and Violence Engagement) Project was set up in 2020 by the Department of Health and is managed by a national oversight committee comprising state agencies, including the gardaí, drug task forces and voluntary groups.

In a report last May, it revealed that there were 1,027 reported cases of drug-related intimidation in 2025 and 2024, when systematic recording of the problem started.