A man who imported nearly €800,000 worth of cigarettes through Rosslare Harbour has been given a suspended three-year sentence at Wexford Circuit Court after the judge heard that his life was in danger from a criminal organisation.
Kevin McGivern, Green Park, Armagh, was charged at Enniscorthy District Court in June last year on three counts related to illegally importing cigarettes through Rosslare Harbour on June 2nd, 2004.
The court heard yesterday that customs officers seized 3,290,000 cigarettes from the trailer of a truck driven by McGivern. Patrick Tracey, prosecuting, said the loss of revenue to the Exchequer would have been €791,357.88.
A customs officer said he had received word from intelligence that the truck was due to arrive from Cherbourg. Customs officers discovered the cigarettes at the rear of the trailer.
David Kennedy, defending, said his client was "a very minor figure in the overall scale of things", with which the customs officer agreed. When Mr Kennedy said McGivern had co-operated as much as he could given the circumstances, the officer replied that he did not aid the investigation materially, but was a help. He said the organisation behind the smuggling might cover both sides of the Border.
McGivern, a married father of three, gave evidence that he had always been in employment. He said the period since he was arrested had been an awful affliction to him and his family and a strain on his relationship with his wife.
He attended his doctor and a psychiatrist and spent two weeks in hospital as a result of the arrest. He said a jail term would be hard on his family as he was the sole earner.
Mr Kennedy said McGivern's early plea, lack of previous convictions, the welfare of his family and the fact that he had acted under fear and compulsion should be taken into account.
Judge Michael O'Shea said McGivern must have known there were illegal goods in the truck he was driving, as he had admitted to customs officers that he thought there was only half a pallet of cigarettes on board.
He would have to impose a custodial sentence as a fine would amount to more than €2 million.
McGivern was given a three-year suspended sentence for evasion of excise duties, a three-year suspended sentence for attempted evasion of excise duty and a two-year suspended sentence for delivering cigarettes without a tax stamp.
He was bound over to keep the peace for three years.