Passenger stopped with suspected false French passport for second time denied bail

Tom Tuite

A Moroccan man caught a second time entering the country on a suspected bogus French passport has been denied bail following his arrest at Dublin Airport.

Mohamad Alami (29), who has no address in Ireland, was charged with possessing a false instrument on Sunday and held pending his hearing at Dublin District Court on Monday.

Alami made no reply when charged, said Detective Sergeant Patrick Whelan, who opposed bail, fearing the accused would not show up for his trial and would flee.

The court heard that the man was arrested while in transit and was attempting to continue flying to Canada.

The detective sergeant also believed the accused had "access to false documents" and there was a risk of re-offending.

He said the gardaí had arrested the accused for the same type of offence two years ago, when the accused arrived in Ireland with a false French passport.

On that occasion he was also attempting to travel to Canada, the court heard. He said it was easy for the accused to obtain fake documents.

The accused was granted legal aid but still had no solicitor to act for him. Criminal defence solicitors are currently engaged in a dispute with the Minister for Justice over the introduction of payment reforms for legal aid cases in the District Court, which replaced the previous per-appearance rates with a flat fee of €520 per case.

Alami, who had the aid of an interpreter, claimed he had a heart condition and wished to go back to Morocco, because he now felt "emotionally and psychologically stressed".

Judge Mark O'Connell explained that this was not a full hearing on the substance of the case, but a bail hearing.

Alami, who has yet to enter a plea, was remanded in custody to appear again on September 4 next.