Notorious Criminal Jeremy Cooper Hospitalised After Prison Altercation During Drugs Search

A lifelong offender with a long history of violent and gang-related crimes has been hospitalised after sustaining a head injury during a contraband search at Wheatfield Prison in Dublin.

Jeremy Cooper (58), who was previously convicted of falsely imprisoning a man later murdered in a notorious gangland killing, was rushed to A&E after he struck his head while resisting prison officers conducting a routine drugs search earlier this week.

Contraband Discovery Leads to Violent Struggle

Sources told this publication that prison officers became suspicious of illegal substances being passed through cell windows, prompting a targeted search operation. During the inspection of Cooper’s cell, officers reportedly discovered a suspected quantity of illegal tablets.

Cooper was subsequently brought to the prison’s reception area for a standard strip search to check for additional contraband. According to sources, he became aggressive, and during the struggle with officers he fell and injured himself. He was immediately transferred to hospital for medical treatment, where he remained as of Wednesday.

As per protocol, gardaí have been alerted to the suspected drugs seizure and are expected to analyse the tablets.

Long Criminal Record

Cooper is well known to law enforcement, with 79 previous convictions, including armed robbery, drug trafficking, and false imprisonment. His most recent sentence was imposed in 2023, when he was jailed after being caught with more than €400 worth of tablets following a foot chase with gardaí.

However, Cooper’s most notorious crime dates back to December 1996, when he helped abduct Mark Dwyer, who was later tortured and murdered by gangland killer “Cotton Eye” Joe Delaney. Cooper was initially charged with murder but later pleaded guilty to false imprisonment, receiving a 12-year sentence.

History of Violent Offences

Cooper went on to receive a further 14-year sentence for a violent home invasion in Tipperary in May 1997. The court heard that he and an accomplice robbed businessman Frank Britton of £40,000 in cigarettes and £9,000 in cash, before binding and gagging Britton, his wife Mary, and their three children.

The family was locked in an unventilated storeroom measuring eight feet by five for 16 hours before raising the alarm. Investigators from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation described Cooper as a joint leader of a ruthless Dublin gang that targeted rural towns.

Prison Service Declines Comment

The Irish Prison Service declined to comment on the incident, citing its policy of not discussing individual prisoners. However, sources say internal procedures were followed and a full report has been filed.