Cork man ‘surprised’ by two charges of drug possession

A Cork man who appeared in the district court charged with possession of cannabis on two separate occasions said he did not realise there were two charges, and thought the matter was not followed up.

Court presenter Sergeant Trish O’Sullivan told Macroom District Court that warrants were obtained to search the home of 52-year-old Declan O’Dea at Gerragh Cottage, Tullatreada, Macroom, on two separate occasions.

The first search was carried out on April 10, 2023, at 11.05pm, and €50 of cannabis herb was seized. Another warrant was obtained and a second search was conducted at 9.30am on May 5, 2023, when another €50 of cannabis was seized.

O’Dea, who represented himself in court, said he was surprised to find out he had been charged with possession of illegal drugs twice.

He told the court that when his house was searched the second time, a small amount of cannabis was left on a bedside locker after gardaí had left.

He said he thought the amount of cannabis involved was “so small they didn’t even bother writing it down”.

Judge Joanne Carroll said for warrants to be obtained to search his house for drugs, gardaí must have had suspicions that there were more than small amounts of drugs at the property.

The court was told that O’Dea had 29 previous convictions, including one for possession of illegal drugs and three for possession of illegal drugs for sale or supply.

For the incident on April 10, O’Dea was convicted and fined €300 with five months to pay. For the incident on May 5, he was convicted and fined €200 and allowed five months to pay. A destruction order was also granted for the seized drugs.

• Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme