A COURT HAS heard how a Kerry businessman became involved in a Mexican cartel’s global drug smuggling operation after his garden centre business hit financial difficulties. 

Nathan McDonnell (44), a father of three with an address at Ballyroe, Tralee, Co Kerry appeared before the three-judge, non-jury court this morning, where he was due to be sentenced.

The court heard details of how the drugs were intended to be shipped to Australia by the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico through organised crime connections in Ireland several front companies.  

The court also heard that when one method of using a fake company as the front fell through a gang member in Kerry approached McDonnell.  

McDonnell pleaded guilty in October to importing one or more controlled drugs, namely methylamphetamine, on 16 October 2023 at Cork Port, Ringaskiddy. He was charged under legislation governing the importation of drugs valued at €13,000 or more.

The father-of-three also pleaded guilty that between 16 October 2023 and 12 February 2024, both dates inclusive, within the State, with knowledge of the existence of a criminal organisation, he did participate in, or contribute to, activity intending to, or being reckless as to whether such participation or contribution could, facilitate the commission of a serious offence by that criminal organisation or any of its members, to wit the importation, sale and supply of controlled drugs.

McDonnell’s arrest followed a joint operation by Gardaí and Revenue Officers which saw the seizure of 564kg of methamphetamine, or crystal meth, with an estimated value of €32.8 million from a container at Cork Port on 16 February last.

Follow-up searches in Kerry and Cork led to the arrest of McDonnell.

The State’s case is that the drugs were imported from Mexico and stored at a garden centre before being transported to Cork, where they were destined for export to Australia.

Detective Sergeant David Howard gave evidence today at a sentence hearing for McDonnell of the detailed and complex garda investigation that would see McDonnell arrested.

Howard, while being examined by David Barry SC for the State, said that he had been engaged in a long term investigation into the activities of an organised crime group in Kerry which had connections across Europe and South America. 

That investigation came to fruition when Customs officers, on foot of intelligence supplied by the gardaí, xrayed a container in the Port of Cork. 

That X-Ray detected anomalies in the cargo of machinery and a “drum” inside the metal box. The officers used an angle grinder and torch to break into the machine and there they discovered the crystal meth. 

This then prompted gardaí to search several properties in Kerry – in Listowel and at Ballyseedy Garden Centre outside Tralee. 

Howard said that his enquiries established that there was a “transnational organised crime group” with a logistical cell operating in Kerry. He said that this group was further linked to the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico which is one of the biggest cartels in the world engaged in murder and drug trafficking.

The focus of the investigation shifted to a number of men that gardaí had identified. One of those was Nathan McDonnell and another man he had connections with. That man cannot be named for legal reasons.

The court heard that the man was in direct contact with another man using a Polish mobile phone number but was based in Spain. Their contacts were to arrange the shipment of the crystal meth or “powder” to Australia via Ireland. 

At the time McDonnell was the CEO of Ballyseedy Garden Centre and had several other businesses operating on a franchise basis. 

The garda searched the Listowel property and also Ballyseedy. 

Gardaí seized devices at the Listowel property which were encrypted communications for the gang – these communications were broken by garda analysts as the same password was used across all apps. 

The court heard that a company called Maltings Investments, which was set up for legitimate means, had been taken over by a man named John McGrath, now deceased, who was connected to the organised crime group. 

In a complex web of using legitimate companies to cover his tracks McGrath even at one point, set up, a fake website and gmail account to give the impression that he was a scrap dealer. He also sent payments via the Malting Investments account to give it the veneer of legitimacy. 

The court heard he contacted a legitimate engineering company who were unaware of the scheme, to rent a yard for a fake scrap dealership. It was all a ruse and his cover story was rumbled by that legitimate company when they discovered that he was clueless on how the scrap business worked. 

The go-between in Kerry, who cannot be named, then was contacted by McGrath and a plan was put in place to find an alternative. 

In discussions with the gang member in Spain it was decided that Ballyseedy and Nathan McDonnell would be the alternative. 

Howard further outlined how the gardaí found numerous messages between the gang members and the organisers. 

The Kerry man who cannot be named contacted McDonnell to set it up that the machine would be shipped to Australia. 

McDonnell, the court was told, organised this onward shipment which was not without its difficulties as they attempted to legitimise the shipment. The machinery containing the drugs, was shipped in a container that went from South America to Antwerp, to the UK and then on to the Port of Cork. 

By October the machine was collected and stored in Ballyseedy. 

In interviews with gardaí McDonnell claimed the machine was to be used in food manufacturing – but the gardaí, using a specialist assessor, said that the machine could only be used in heavy mining and would require an electrical substation to operate. 

‘Cancer’

Over the course of more than 20 interviews McDonnell initially denied any knowledge of the operation but by the fifth day he had accepted his part. 

He described his involvement with the other man as a “cancer” and said that he feared for his safety and the safety of his family. 

David Berry, Counsel for the state, said that while McDonnell had no involvement in the initial stages of the trafficking he became the main operator in connection to the shipping to Australia.

Michael Bowman, SC, for the defence told the court that Ballyseedy Garden Centre was in serious financial risks and McDonnell was also under money issues privately. 

The company oed €1 million to Revenue and they were struggling to pay wages and creditors.

Bowman said this was the impetus for McDonnell to get involved in the drug shipment scheme. 

The Court, presided over by Judges Melanie Greally, Sarah Berkeley and Grainne Malone, agreed to an adjournment of the case to facilitate the defence to get details of the status of Ballyseedy’s business affairs. 

The court will come back again on Monday and it is anticipated the sentencing will be finalised at the end of the month.