Dealt drugs to pay for car after crash

A Dundalk man who had never been in trouble before was found with drugs worth over €7,000 and got involved in supplying because he needed money to pay for a car he’d damaged in an accident.

Conor Hanway, (22), 3 Bothar na Feirme, admitted four counts of having drugs for sale or supply at that address on January 9 last year. Judge Flann Brennan heard how Gardai had received complaints about drug dealing in the area and had mounted a surveillance operation.

They searched the house after getting a warrant and found cannabis, worth €6,994, cocaine worth €166 and 100 tablets, worth €200, along with weighing scales and deal bags. Hanway was arrested and admitted having the drugs for sale or supply. He has no previous convictions and solicitor Peter Lavery said Hanway had co-operated with Gardai.

He got involved in drugs because he needed money to pay for a car he had damaged. Mr Lavery said there were unusual elements to the accident because Hanway had crashed into a car and then left the scene without being detected. But the defendant went to the Gardai and admitted what he had done, having called to a number of houses in the area to try to find out who owned the vehicle that had been damaged.

The defendant undertook to pay the money back, Mr Lavery said, but ‘very foolishly’ got involved in dealing. Hanway had been smoking cannabis at the time and ‘ thought the way to raise money was to deal drugs which is why he is before the court now’.

Mr Lavery said Hanway ‘ had never done it before and it was a huge mistake on his part’. He said his client is ‘otherwise of very good character’ and the solicitor handed in a reference to the judge.

Hanway has since had counselling and ‘no longer takes drugs or associate with people like that’.

He is to become a father for the first time shortly and is working full-time. Mr Lavery said: ‘I ask you to consider him as a man who made a terrible mistake, but has otherwise led a good life, done his best to make amends and this is not who he is’.

Judge Brennan said he was willing to consider community service instead of a jail term and recommended 170 hours instead of an eight month jail term.