Limerick criminal stole van not knowing it contained €1m worth of drugs

A MAN  stole a van which unbeknownst to him contained €1m worth of pharmaceutical drugs inside, after the driver left the keys in the ignition, Limerick Criminal Circuit Court heard.

Jason Curtin, aged 32, of Railway House, Spitland, Old Cork Road, Limerick city pleaded guilty to the unauthorised taking of a vehicle, burglary, criminal damage and possession of stolen property, at a sentencing hearing on Monday.

Prosecuting barrister John O’Sullivan, instructed by State solicitor Padraig Mawe, outlined the evidence with the assistance of Sergeant Donagh Walsh.

Mr O’Sullivan said a van driver was carrying out deliveries of pharmaceutical products to chemists in Limerick city on the morning of July 20, 2024.

“At 7am, he parked the van in St John’s Square to carry out a delivery. He left the keys in the ignition. The accused sat into the van and stole it. The delivery driver gave chase on foot. Mr Curtin drove the van up a one-way street,” said Mr O’Sullivan, who noted Curtin was disqualified from driving at the time.

The barrister said the van contained pharmaceutical products worth in excess of €1m. 

“Fortunately there was a tracker in the van and gardai located it 56 minutes later in Marian Avenue in Janesboro. The van was locked. 

“The accused was arrested by gardai a short time later. He gave gardai a false name. The keys of the stolen vehicle were in his pocket,” said Mr O’Sullivan.

The court heard Curtin entered the curtilage of a property by forcing a gate, which cost €400 to repair, and stole a baseball hat from a car and a hi-vis jacket from a shed.

“He was wearing the items he had stolen. He said the van was ‘nothing to do with him’ and said he gave a false name because he didn’t want to lose his job,” said Mr O’Sullivan.

The court heard Curtin has 190 previous convictions for a “miscellany of offences” including burglary, unauthorised taking of a vehicle, possession of stolen property, robbery, theft, assault, violent disorder, arson, possession of weapons.

Liam Carroll BL (pictured below), who represented Curtin, said the stand-out offence is his client taking a vehicle with over €1m worth of pharmaceuticals inside.

He said Curtin did not know there was this quantity of products inside and it actually was to his disadvantage as there was a tracker in the van.

Mr Carroll put it to Sgt Walsh that it was an “offence of opportunism”. “Yes,” said Sgt Walsh.

The defence barrister handed in two letters to Judge Colin Daly penned by Curtin.

“One of the letters is to the homeowner. He said he is disgusted by his actions. He was in the throes of heroin addiction at the time. He wants to assure the homeowner he didn’t single her out,” said Mr Carroll.

The barrister said Curtin has a partner and a son and the couple, who have been together for 18 years, are expecting a second child in six weeks.

“This is motivation for him to live a life without criminality,” said Mr Carroll. He said the death of Curtin's brother has had a profound effect on him.   

“That experience has left him in no doubt how one person’s actions can affect an entire family. He doesn’t want his kids to hear news of something similar,” said Mr Carroll, who added Curtin is from a family of 10 brothers and four sisters.

“When he is on drugs he turns into someone else. He is on methadone for the first time. He is studying maths and English. He has begun to make changes. Lessons have been learned,” said Mr Carroll. Judge Daly rose from the bench to consider the sentence. On his return, he said the theft of the van appears to be opportunistic.

“The fact there was €1m worth of pharmaceuticals led to his undoing because of the tracker. The products were recovered. Deliveries were disrupted,” said Judge Daly, who spoke of Curtin’s significant number of relevant previous convictions.

The judge said after Curtin abandoned the van in a housing estate he entered the curtilage of a private house.

“He stole items from a shed and a car. He didn’t enter the premises,” said Judge Daly, who again referred to Curtin’s relevant previous convictions.

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In mitigation, the judge took into account Curtin’s plea, personal family history being one of 15, being in the throes of heroin addiction, having a long-time partner, one child and one on the way. 

“It is his first time on methadone. He has expressed remorse,” said Judge Daly. He said he couldn’t give Curtin the normal reduction in sentence for his guilty plea due to his high level of recidivism. 

Judge Daly imposed four year jail sentences for the unauthorised taking of the van and for the burglary. The prison terms are to be served concurrently. The final 12 months were suspended and sentence backdated to July 2024 when Curtin first entered custody.

Judge Daly disqualified Curtin from driving for 10 years. Criminal damage and possession of stolen property charges were taken into consideration.