Man had 77,000 cigarettes

A 44-year-old father of two, who admitted making a ‘stupid mistake’ after he was found with contraband cigarettes and tobacco, has had his case adjourned at Dundalk Circuit Court.

Edward Stokes of 1 Road Two, Muirhevnamor, pleaded guilty to evasion of duty and attempted evasion of duty on the cigarettes and tobacco, which resulted in a loss of €33,880.32 in revenue to the Exchequer.

Evidence was given that Customs and Excise Officers called to a house at Woodville Manor, Tom Bellew Avenue, on November 15, 2016.

Stokes took responsibility for the cigarettes and fine cut tobacco which were found in a wooden shed in the garden during a search of the premises.

There were seven different brands of cigarettes and one brand of tobacco for rolling cigarettes, all of which were without a tax stamp.

In total there were 77,200 cigarettes and 0.7kg of fine cut tobacco.

Stokes maintained that he had bought them at a market but couldn’t remember the name of the vendor and forgot which market.

The court heard that the accused didn’t have any other prosecutions by Revenue.

His barrister said his client had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and had entered signed pleas.

His explanation for having the goods was that he had been asked to hold the packages. He accepted that it was a ‘stupid mistake’ and apologised.

His client had left school in his early teens and had been mostly unemployed. He had two teenage sons from a previous relationship and is in regular contact with his former partner. He was currently attending SeeTec and would be starting a folk lift driving course in the coming weeks.

Judge Martina Baxter adjourned the case until November 30, saying she wished to see a letter proving that he has been offered the course. She also wanted clarification on a reference to a previous conviction in the Probation and Welfare report which had been before the court.