Waterford Gardaí found over €2000 worth of cannabis concealed in part of a hoover while searching a car in 2024, the District Court heard.
Adrian Lanigan (32) of Apartment 1, 18 High Street, Waterford, appeared at a recent sitting of Waterford District Court before Judge Paula Murphy, where he pleaded guilty to being in possession of controlled drugs for personal use and for unlawful sale and/or supply, contrary to Sections 3 and 15 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. This related to an incident in June 2024 where Gardaí stopped a car that he was a passenger in.
The court was told that on 1 June 2024, Gardaí were conducting a checkpoint on Exchange Street, Waterford, when they encountered a car that had a strong smell of cannabis emanating from it. After they searched the car, a quantity of cannabis with a value of €2,200 was found concealed in part of a hoover in the backseat of the car.
The accused was arrested, and subsequently made admissions of possessing the drugs when he was interviewed by Gardaí. It was noted that he has no previous convictions.
Acting for the defendant, solicitor Ken Cunningham highlighted that his client was a passenger in the car, and the driver had been ‘adamant’ that the cannabis had nothing to do with them. He stated that the accused relied ‘heavily’ on cannabis for medicinal purposes due to severe underlying mental health issues that he has suffered from.
The solicitor added that a search of his client’s home that was undertaken by Gardaí afterwards was negative, and no associated materials such as bags or scales were found with the initial cannabis discovery. Mr Cunningham concluded by highlighting that the accused has come to no adverse Garda attention since the incident, pleaded guilty at an early opportunity, and has worked towards solving the cannabis misuse problem that he has suffered from.
Judge Murphy decided to order the accused to complete 200 hours of community service in lieu of a six month sentence. He was deemed suitable for this following a consultation with a member of the Probation Service. The Judge made an order for this to be completed within a year, and took the Section 3 matter into consideration.
Funded by the Court Reporting Scheme
Robyn Power
