Ali Adnan Duran got a nine-year sentence after being caught with almost €1 million worth of heroin at a Dublin bed breakfast in 2019.
Duran was released from custody last week, according to sources and deported from the country after serving his time.
The Turkish drug dealer along with his accomplice Kuldip Singh from Birmingham were named in the recent Criminal Assets Bureau case against Sweeney’s wealth management firm.
Kuldip Singh — © Colin Keegan
The company, Evergreen Wealth Management, had been targeted by CAB and a plot of land has since been seized and sold off.
In the evidence given to the High Court how Sweeney was associated with “international criminals” including Singh described as “a national drug importer in the UK” and Duran, “a Turkish heroin importer.”
A detective had watched as Sweeney first met a senior member of the organised crime gang known as The Family at the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre car park in August 2019.
“Following this meeting Marcus Sweeney met with Kuldip Singh and Ali Adnan Duran,” it was stated by the CAB’s chief officer Michael Gubbins.
“Gardai subsequently obtained a search warrant for the room in which Kuldip Singh and Ali Adnan Duran were residing at the Golden Dawn B&B, Mill Road, Saggart, Co. Dublin.”
“During the course of this search Gardaí located a suitcase which contained 14 half kilogram bocks of heroin (diamorphine) with a street value of €961,576.”
All three men were arrested and the two Turks were charged and convicted of the possession of the drugs.
In June 2020 Duran got a nine-year prison sentence at Dublin Circuit court where it was heard he was convicted of trafficking 59kg of heroin in Turkey in 2016 and got a 12 and half years.
He fled Turkey to avoid going to prison and went to live in the Netherlands before arriving in Ireland.
At Singh’s trial in 2021 it was heard how the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau had placed a number of cars under surveillance in the Liffey Valley car park.
One of the vehicles, a 4×4 carrying Singh and the Duran, was followed to the B&B in west Dublin before travelling on to a restaurant in Naas, Co Kildare.
Garda got a search warrant for the B&B and during a search of Singh’s room, a locked suitcase was found containing morphine valued at €961,576.
Detectives also discovered €9,000 in cash in zip-lock bags, electronic devices including encrypted mobile phones and notepads.
He was given a four-year sentence and has also since been released.
Marcus Sweeney
News in 90 Seconds – September 23rd
In his 2023 judgement against EWM Judge Alex Owens said Sweeney was “up to his oxters” in criminality.
Sweeney had been served a Garda GIM form, given to people who gardaí believe there is an immediate threat to their life, according to evidence in the CAB case.
This was a direct result of his involvement with criminals and money laundering and included serious threats, assault and intimidation.
Gardaí believe Sweeney and another business associate held a meeting with some of the investors in the firm in early 2020 over the debts.
This, according to gardaí in their CAB case, was done to “reduce the threats to their person and property.”
The same judge asked him to leave the court room earlier this year when Sweeney made an attempt to raise his case again.
Judge Owens said it wasn’t clear what Sweeney wanted from the court and was making a nuisance of himself.
He told him to “please go” after he failed to make a coherent argument.
The judge said he could make “hide nor hair” of what Sweeny wanted to achieve from the documents he had lodged in court.
As Sweeney attempted to put forward his argument he told the judge he had the right to speak.
However, Judge Owens explained that he didn’t have such a right and did not have the right to “ramble on”.
“I’m now going to ask the duty guard to remove you, you are making a nuisance of yourself.”
Sweeney then quietly left the courtroom.