*The man was attending a cousin’s wedding at Bunratty Castle Hotel. 

A JUDGE has convicted a wedding goer of cocaine dealing after a garda told her that cocaine users would snort four or five lines of cocaine from a gram of cocaine.

At Ennis District Court, Judge Mary Larkin convicted David Keane (30) of Island Rd, Assumpta Park, Limerick with the possession of cocaine with intent to sell or supply on June 23rd 2019.

Judge Larkin said that she would impose 100 hours community service on Mr Keane for the offence instead of a suspended prison term.

Mr Keane was attending a cousin’s wedding at the Bunratty Castle Hotel on the date and the drugs were found on him at Ennis Garda Station after his arrest on the night.

Mr Keane told Gardai that the nine bags of cocaine, found concealed in his underwear, were for his personal use. Gardai also found €1,310 in cash on Mr Keane and two mobile phones.

At interview, a Garda told Mr Keane that, “this is a phenomenal amount of cocaine for one person”.

Mr Keane replied, “I had an awful amount of cocaine taken.”

Mr Keane said, “I had no intention of selling drugs. It was my family at the wedding – I wouldn’t even let them know I had drugs”.

In evidence, Det Garda Kevin Hooban told the court that the nine bags comprising 8.5 grams with a street value of €580 were found on Mr Keane at the end of the wedding.

Det Hooban told the court that “there is no possible way he could have taken that amount of drugs without being hospitalised” having already consumed other cocaine.

Det Hooban said that it was his opinion that the nine bags of cocaine were the leftovers of what Mr Keane sold at the wedding and cash were the proceeds of sale and supply of the drugs.

Judge Larkin asked Det Hooban how many lines would cocaine users snort from a gram of cocaine.

In response, Det Hooban said, “A good few people ask me this and I was only asked about this last week. It depends how thick the lines are but from what I gather you could get four or five lines from a gram”.

Judge Larkin said that she was absolutely satisfied and didn’t have a shadow of a doubt that Mr Keane had the cocaine to sell at the wedding over his failure to answer questions about the drugs.

Judge Larkin said, “He doesn’t know this and he doesn’t know that. I have no shadow of a doubt that he had the drugs there for one particular reason”.

Judge Larkin said that Mr Keane was unable to say how many grams he had before being found with the nine bags.

Judge Larkin said, “If I go to a wedding, I would be buying a dress and a pair of shoes to get all fancied up – that would be my thing. I know how much the dress and the shoes would cost – how much gear did you get and how much did it cost you?”

Mr Keane said that he paid €300 but didn’t know how much cocaine he received.

Related News

liam grant 2
Periodic speed limits outside schools in West & North Clare pushed
Ennis Rugby Club 100th Year celebrations--2
Ennis RFC's 'A Century of Scrums' book launch at the Old Ground Hotel
clancy park
Speeding fears flagged as traffic calming sought in Clancy Park
sixmilebridge arena opening 27-10-23 joe cooney 1
'We're getting the brunt of it' - local reps frustrated by Oireachtas members on Broadford & Cooraclare
Latest News
Webp
Black Friday: local businesses worth supporting this Black Friday
blake's corner bob singer
National support needed to progress improvements of North Clare road network for Walker Cup
colin crehan handball
Crehan & Nash the home favourites as Clare hosts Irish Nationals
Rental Property
Include cost rental units in social housing developments to attack rental costs - Green Cllr Grant
ann marie flanagan padraic hayes
'Don't assume we are not educated' - strong opposition to Green Paper voiced by Clare Leader Forum
Premium
Rental Property
Include cost rental units in social housing developments to attack rental costs - Green Cllr Grant
ann marie flanagan padraic hayes
'Don't assume we are not educated' - strong opposition to Green Paper voiced by Clare Leader Forum
clare gaa convention 12-12-19 60 michael o'neill
Frost to challenge O'Neill for Central Council role
scariff aerial
Application finalised for Scariff Regeneration Project
marty hannan-2
41 year old Shannon man ordered to stay off social media platforms and accused of making online threats

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

Scroll to Top
Enable Notifications for the latest news and updates OK No thanks