Smuggling case: Dublin court jails Romanian woman
Daniela Rusescu was remanded in custody after a judge ruled she posed a flight risk while facing two counts of coordinated people smuggling.
By Luca Harrison ·
The maximum penalty for the charges laid against Daniela Rusescu is ten years in prison. The 34-year-old woman, a mother of one living in Northampton, England, was denied bail at Dublin District Court on Wednesday. She faces two counts under the Criminal Justice (Smuggling of Persons) Act 2021 for helping two Albanian men enter Ireland.
Garda National Immigration Bureau officers arrested Rusescu in Terminal 1 of Dublin Airport on Saturday evening. She had just landed from a flight out of Barcelona. Detective Cathal Brady opposed her release, citing a high risk that she would flee the country before her trial.
The alleged operation involved two separate incidents this month. On October 24, an Albanian man arrived on Ryanair flight FR6874 without a valid visa. Immigration officers refused him entry and found a banking app on his phone linked to a UK number associated with Rusescu. When they called that number, Rusescu confirmed she was traveling with him and had already cleared immigration.
Her phone contained boarding passes for herself and another passenger, as well as a photo of a fake Irish passport. The face on that document matched the man who was turned away. Investigators believe Rusescu flew from Luton to Barcelona on October 23 to meet him before they traveled to Dublin together.
The second count relates to an incident on October 10. Another Albanian man arrived from Barcelona without a visa. He claimed asylum and reportedly destroyed a false Irish passport during the flight. Ryanair data showed Rusescu paid for that ticket using sterling.
Rusescu spoke through an interpreter. For the earlier charge, she stated she was in the UK on October 10 and not in Ireland. Her defense lawyer, Paddy Flynn, argued that her boyfriend had duped her by using her phone. He contended there was insufficient evidence of a coordinated effort and that family in Ireland would help her secure an address.
Judge Michael Ramsey accepted the prosecution's argument on flight risk. He noted Rusescu had no ties to Ireland and access to fraudulent documents. The two Albanian men have since left Ireland for the UK. Rusescu must appear in court again on November 4 to receive directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions.
