Drug case adjourned for a week

A woman found in possession of more than €1,000 worth of cocaine and cannabis has been remanded on continuing bail to December 13th.

Drogheda District Court heard gardaí carried out a search at the home of Jacqueline Heeney in Moneymore on June 6th this year and found €920 worth of cocaine and €208 of cannabis along with other drug paraphernalia.

When asked by Judge Eirinn McKiernan what the other paraphernalia was, Sgt Brady said it included cash and cheques to the value of €1,000, a number of mobile phones and a weighing scales.

Defence Barrister Irene Sands said the cash was money which belonged to Heeney’s son. She said the 39-year-old mother of three was going through a very difficult period at the time of this offence and before it. She added Heeney had never been incourt before. ‘She had lost her stepdad to kidney failure, that’s not an excuse, but she was going through a hard time and this was her way of dealing with it,’ said Ms Sands.

Judge Eirinn McKiernan said the difficulty she faced in relation to the case, especially the section 15 charge of sale or supply, is the young people affected by it. ‘ There is clear evidence here of sale and supply. It’s a very serious offence. Look at this court, it’s polluted with drugs and it’s down to drugs.’ Ms Sands said Heeney was not selling drugs but had ‘ bulk bought’ what was found for her own use, as was the scales.

Judge McKiernan questioned where Heeney got the money for the drugs and questioned why gardaí would carry out a search if they thought the drugs were for her own personal use. The judge said she wanted to hear from the investigating garda and adjourned the case for one week.