Two men have appeared in court charged over a seizure of €205,000 worth of suspected heroin in Dublin.
Kevin Dunphy (33) of St Marnock’s Bay, and David Power (also 33) of Bluebell Road, Crumlin, both in Dublin, were charged with unlawful possession of the drug at the Chapelizod bypass on Friday.
They appeared before Judge Derek Cooney at Dublin District Court on Saturday.
Dublin Crime Response Team garda Philip Lavery stated that there was no objection to bail being granted to Mr Power, subject to strict conditions and cashless bail of €3,000.
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The judge ordered Mr Power, who has yet to enter a plea, to provide gardaí with a contact phone number, surrender his passport, obey a 10pm to 7am curfew and sign on daily at his local Garda station.
Mr Power, who is on social welfare, was allowed free legal aid and will appear again on December 9th for directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Garda Lavery opposed Mr Dunphy’s bail due to the seriousness of the case. He alleged that the accused collected a bag at an apartment complex on the Ballyfermot Road before getting into a car and being driven away. He agreed with defence counsel Kevin McCrave that it was alleged the co-accused, Mr Power, was the driver.
The court heard that the car was stopped and that the accused “moved the bag from the footwell and placed it in the rear of the vehicle”. It was found to contain 1.4kg of suspected heroin.
The garda agreed with counsel that Mr Dunphy maintained that he thought the substance was “a mixing agent only”. The officer also feared the accused would evade justice and would not support him being bailed on terms similar to those imposed on Mr Power.
It emerged that the seizure had to be analysed, and it was expected that the case would be sent to the Circuit Court, which has wider sentencing powers.
Mr McCrave told the court his client was in a stable relationship and had recently become a father, and submitted that he was not a flight risk.
He highlighted how the seizure had to be tested and that there was a lengthy waiting list before trials are reached in the Circuit Court. Bail was denied.
The accused was granted legal aid and remanded in custody to appear again on December 4th pending the DPP’s directions.
