Nathan McDonnell was 'committed to and invested in' the success of a €32m crystal meth operation, the court heard as he was sentenced today
Once respected business owner Nathan McDonnell was "committed to and invested in" the success of a €32m crystal meth operation by an organised crime group with links to the notorious Mexican Sinaloa Cartel, the Special Criminal Court has found in jailing him for 12 years.
The former garden centre owner was present in court today wearing a face mask after having his jaw broken in Portlaoise Prison during an assault by a well-known gangland inmate. The court heard he has undergone surgery to attach screws, wires and two plates to his jaw. The non-jury court was previously told that custom officers operating on intelligence had stopped and inspected a container in Cork Port on February 15, 2024.
One of the locations searched was the "well-known and respectable" Ballyseedy Garden Centre and at the time McDonnell was the chief executive of the centre and companies associated with it. The machine was stored at McDonnell's garden centre in Tralee for several months before being transported to Cork, destined for export to Australia.
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