Two men have appeared before a special sitting of Fermoy District Court charged in connection with the seizure of 23.6kg of herbal cannabis, with a street value of €472,000, at a house in Co Cork earlier this week.
Thomas Doody (32) and Gavin Downey (30) were charged with possession and possession for sale of supply of cannabis at Glennamucklagh West in Newmarket on Wednesday. The offences are contrary to section three and Section 15 of the Misuse of Drugs Act.
The evidence from gardaí was that Mr Doody and Mr Downey were “caught red-handed” loading boxes containing cannabis when gardaí arrived at the scene at 2.30pm on January 28th.
Det Garda Brendan McGarry gave evidence of the arrest, charge and caution of Mr Doody of Glennamucklagh West. He said the accused made no reply when the charges were put to him after caution at 12.05pm today.
READ MORE
An objection to bail was made. Det Garda McGarry cited the seriousness of the charges, the amount of drugs seized and the possibility of further charges.
He said that the defendant was caught “red-handed” loading a consignment of cannabis into a vehicle when gardaí arrived at the scene with a search warrant.
Det Garda McGarry said that further, more serious charges were likely to follow. He told the court Mr Doody was “actively involved in the supply of drugs at the divisional and regional level”.
Det Garda McGarry said Mr Doody was a drugs user. He refuted suggestions made by defence solicitor Denis Linehan that Mr Doody possibly did not know what was in the unmarked boxes that had been delivered to the property.
Det Garda McGarry said the accused man was “actively involved in the sale and supply of drugs at a high level”.
“When we arrived at the scene, he was loading the boxes [in to the car]. He panicked and threw it [a box] in the air. It is clear he knew what was in the box.”
Mr Linehan asked that bail be granted to his client, who resides in a caravan at the rear of the property where he was arrested.
However, Det Garda McGarry told the court Mr Doody had lived in Germany for a year from 2022 to 2023. He said he observed the accused man loading “a large consignment of cannabis into the boot of a car”.
Judge Miriam Walsh declined to grant bail in the case arising out of the seriousness of the charges. She remanded Mr Doody in custody to appear before Mallow District Court on February 3rd next.
Meanwhile, Garda Anthony Finn gave evidence of the arrest charge and caution of Gavin Downey of Glennamucklagh West. He said Mr Downey made no reply when the charges were put to him following caution at noon on Friday.
Garda Finn said there was an objection to bail arising out of the gravity of the charges and the nature of the evidence facing the accused.
“He [Downey] was caught red-handed. A substantial quantity of cannabis had been delivered. He was loading cannabis into the boot.”
He said the defendant resided at the address where he was caught with the drugs.
Mr Downey was represented in court by solicitor Charles O’Connor. He said his client was willing to reside outside of the area if he was granted bail in the case. He stated the father of five was a native of Mallow and could stay there while on bail. Judge Walsh refused bail and remanded Mr Downey in custody to appear before Mallow District Court by video link on February 3rd.
The arrests were carried out as part of an intelligence-led operation involving the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, Cork North West Divisional Drugs Unit and Revenue Customs Service.
The seized drugs have been sent to Forensic Science Ireland for analysis. This seizure forms part of Operation Tara, an enhanced national anti-drugs strategy launched in 2021.
