A DRUG courier caught in Dublin airport with cannabis valued at almost €90,000 has been given a six-year sentence. South African Willem Harding (41) agreed to transport the drugs after he was unable to repay a debt to loan sharks.
Harding, Dawkens Street, Freemanville, North West Province, pleaded guilty to possession of the drugs for sale or supply on March 6th, 2009.
Judge Katherine Delahunt said she was taking into account Harding’s poor health and his co-operation. Harding suffered from chronic asthma. The judge imposed a six-year term which she backdated to his arrest and ordered he be removed from the country after his sentence.
Garda Eamon Cleary told Róisín Lacey, prosecuting, that when Harding was stopped after a flight from Paris five heat-sealed slabs of cannabis were recovered from his suitcase.
