Carlow man caught with €23k drugs in shed avoids jail
A Carlow man who agreed to hold over €20,000 of cannabis in a shed to feed his own addiction has been given a three-year suspended sentence.
Colm Cody (41) of Augha, Bagenalstown, pleaded guilty at Carlow Circuit Criminal Court to having cannabis, worth an estimated €21,097, MDMA with an estimated value of €1,930 and cocaine with a value of €656 at his home on November 28, 2023. He has no previous convictions.
Detective Sergeant Stephen Delaney told Brian O’Shea BL, prosecuting, that a warrant was secured to search Cody’s home on the basis of garda information.
Cody was not there but his daughter was and the gardaí waited until he returned. A small amount of cannabis and MDMA was found in Cody’s bedroom with the larger quantity of cannabis, more MDMA and the cocaine, being discovered in the shed.
Cody accepted responsibility at the scene. He later told gardaí in interview that cannabis found in his bedroom was for his own use. He said he was taking the drug to help him deal with stress and depression. He said the MDMA was also for his own use.
Cody told gardaí he agreed to store the cannabis to feed his own cannabis addiction. He denied selling the drugs but accepted that he had committed a crime by allowing the cannabis to be stored in his shed.
Det Sgt Delaney agreed with Colman Cody SC, defending, that his client had been threatened severely to get involved in the offence with one person telling him “your daughter is at home all day”.
It was accepted that Cody “took that as a direct threat towards himself and his family”.
Det Sgt Delaney further accepted that Cody has not come to adverse attention since and was not making money from his role.
Judge Eugene O’Kelly asked Det Sgt Delaney if he accepts that Cody was storing the drugs under threat.
“I do accept that, yes,” the sergeant replied.
Mr Cody said his client’s daughter is seriously ill and he is her primary carer.
He said he had been abusing alcohol but in 2017 he became addicted to cannabis. He has since sought help for this addiction.
Mr Cody asked the court to accept that his client was vulnerable and “he had to resort to this in order to feed his addiction”,Judge O’Kelly said he found it “extraordinary” that someone who has such a seriously ill daughter would engage in this type of behaviour before he accepted that Cody was operating at a low level in the enterprise.
He set a headline sentence of four years before he imposed a sentence of three years having taken into consideration Cody’s lack of previous convictions, his mental health difficulties and the fact that he has a good work history.
Judge O’Kelly acknowledged that Cody had been “a functioning alcoholic but he turned to drugs in an effort to self-medicate”, referring to Cody’s mental health issues.
He acknowledged that he has a “difficult family situation” and has successfully engaged with a drug awareness programme. He said a report from The Probation Service concluded that he is genuinely remorseful and has gained insight into the potential consequences of the drug industry.
Judge O’Kelly suspended the three-year jail term on strict conditions including that Cody engage with the Probation Service for 12 months.
Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme
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