Mother ‘forced at gunpoint’ to stash cannabis in her home, court told

Tom Tuite

A Westmeath woman has told a court a criminal forced her to store drugs after he "stuck a gun to my head" and threatened to kill and drive a knife through her jugular.

Amy O'Connor (40), of Auburn Heights, Athlone, pleaded guilty to possessing drugs on January 18th, 2020, which were worth more than €13,000, an offence that can carry a 10-year sentence.

This week's Mullingar Circuit Criminal Court sessions heard O'Connor once travelled to Venezuela to visit her former partner Leigh O'Neill and his brother Dermot.

The Athlone men had been jailed in South America for drug offences. However, the pair broke out of prison and returned to Ireland in 2013 but have since died.

O'Connor told Judge Keenan Johnson she broke it off with Leigh about 10 years ago. However, in late 2019, she came into contact with a person she previously knew through Leigh.

The mother of three maintained this man made her drive to another location in Westmeath, held a knife to her and said, "You will do what your f***ing told you w***e, or I will drive it through your jugular."

She told the court that the man "stuck a gun to my head" and kept it pointed at her during the drive while threatening to kill her.

O'Connor said they met another man to collect the cannabis, and the pair "joked about putting me in the boot".

Visibly upset, she said that on another occasion, the same man left a knife outside her home, threatened her family, and she was terrified.

The prosecution challenged her account but she maintained she was afraid and being watched.

Although she admitted having the drugs, she still disputes portions of the prosecution evidence, which resulted in what is known as a Newton hearing. She denies that she was ever involved in selling or supplying the cannabis uncovered in her home.

Garda Stephanie Treacy said she carried out surveillance and observed several people calling to O'Connor's home, but they did not stay long. However, she did not witness any item changing hands.

A warrant was obtained, and the house was searched, resulting in gardaí uncovering vacuum-packed bags in O'Connor's bedroom, and she admitted ownership but later told gardaí she was threatened.

The total value was €67,660, and gardaí had no record of her attempts to inform them of the situation.

During her interview, she said that the drugs belonged to the man she knew through her now-deceased ex-partner Leigh O'Neill.

However, she did not give gardaí the PIN to her phone, which they could not unlock and in court O'Connor said she could not remember it due to a brain injury she suffered last year.

She claimed she repeatedly tried to contact the local garda station directly, including the drug unit's number, but never dialled 999.

John Shortt SC, defending, submitted that his client had also given an account of being attacked previously, but the CCTV evidence was unavailable, and she had made numerous attempts to seek help from gardaí. A psychological report has also been drafted and furnished to the court.

The case resumes later this month.