Tag Archives: cannabis

A CIRCUIT Court judge has said it is “high time we wake up to the seriousness of drugs” and hit out at the lack of services being provided to deal with this “scourge” in society. Judge Gerald Keys highlighted the dire need for drug rehabilitation clinics to be established, warning that in the absence of these services the problem will only get worse. Speaking in the case of a Clare drug dealer caught with more than €15,000 worth of cocaine and cannabis, Judge Keys said, “It’s high time we wake up to the seriousness of drugs, it’s at a level that is destroying our society”. “No new clinics have been resourced to deal with drug addiction and without it, the number of drug cases will increase”. In his judgement in the case on Tuesday, Judge Keys said he was “blue in the face” from highlighting this matter. He reiterated what he is now known for saying at each of these …

As part of an operation targeting the illegal sale and supply of controlled drugs in the Shannon area Gardaí have seized cannabis herb (pending analysis) with an estimated street value of €110,000. A van was stopped and searched in Clonmoney West, Bunratty, on Wednesday afternoon at approximately 3.30pm; during the course of the search cannabis herb was seized. Two men, aged 37 and 27, were arrested in connection with this incident and were currently detained at Shannon Garda Station under the provisions of Section 2 – Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996. These operations use advanced analytical and intelligence methods to disrupt criminals and dismantle their networks. Drug seizures play a critical role in targeting the livelihood of criminals and reducing their ability to carry out illegal activities. Drug seizures also help protect communities from the devastating impact of drugs and the associated criminality.

As part of an intelligence led, joint operation, with An Garda Síochána, Revenue officers today (Monday) seized 1.6 kgs of Cannabis Herb with an estimated street value of approximately €32,000 at Newcastle West, Limerick. The drugs had been sent in freight from the Netherlands. Two men, aged 32 and 46, were arrested, by gardaí and detained at Henry Street Garda Station, under the provisions of Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996. Investigations are continuing.

CLARE Garda Chief Superintendent John Kerin has described drug barons who target young people to store drugs as “vultures” and “parasites”. In a hard-hitting end-of-year assessment of the drugs problem, he said usage among young people has increased significantly. He also said he feels sorry for the families of some young people who were caught up in some of the 2014 drugs finds. “As regards some of the more recent high-profile detections, I would know some of the families involved and I’d have to say my heart goes out to them. They are really decent people but unfortunately their children have been used by people that I would describe as vultures and parasites. They’re destroying these young people’s lives. They’re innocent, gullible and are getting very, very little out of keeping the drugs for the drug barons. “The consequences of they being caught, and a number of people are now before the courts, are really horrendous. As I said, our …

TWO men involved in cultivating cannabis with a potential value of €326,600 at a rented house in Tulla earlier this year have received jail sentences and could end up serving their time in a Polish prison. Rafal Ucinek (26) and Emil Sumczynski (24), both with an address at Miltown, Tulla, appeared before a sitting of Limerick Circuit Court on Friday last, where they were each sentenced on a charge of cultivating cannabis on January 13 last. Judge Carroll Moran imposed a four-year prison sentence on Ucinek and a two-year jail term on Sumczynski, which he ordered to be backdated to January 13 last, when they were first taken into custody. Judge Moran said the charge of cultivation carried a maximum sentence of 14 years, which “is a very considerable sentence”. Recalling the facts in the case, Judge Moran said, “As a result of confidential information, the gardaí obtained a warrant to search a house near Tulla. At 10.10pm on January 13, …

A man is due to appear before a sitting of Ennis District Court this Wednesday morning in connection with a seizure of cannabis plants and herb estimated to be worth almost €100,000 . The seizure was made at an address in Ballymaley in Ennis on Monday as part of on-going intelligence-led operations targeting the sale and supply of drugs in the Clare area. Gardaí from the Divisional Drugs Unit, on foot of a warrant, searched an address and located 118 cannabis plants and a quantity of cannabis herb with an estimated value of €98,000 (pending analysis). Two men were arrested at the premises on Monday at approximately 12:30pm, one aged in his 30s and one in his 40s. They were arrested at the scene and detained at Ennis Garda station under the provisions of Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996. One of the men was later released and a file is to be prepared for the Director of …

  By CAROL BYRNE GARDAÍ are appealing to landlords to frequently check their properties arising from the discovery of six cannabis growhouses, all located in rental properties in County Clare in the past three weeks. The warning comes after gardaí uncovered a sixth grow house in County Clare last Thursday, where cannabis plants with an estimated street value of up to €144,000 were found in Mullagh. This latest haul brings the total drugs seized in the county to €1.43 million. The seizure was made as part of an ongoing operation targeting the cultivation, possession and sale of cannabis in the county. “Because of recent discoveries of cannabis growhouses in the county we are asking all those who have rented properties to check them and ensure all is in order and if they have any suspicions to contact the Gardaí immediately,” Superintendent Derek Smart of Ennis Garda Station said. He said “in the vast majority” of grow house cases the operations …

GARDAÍ  seized a quantity of drugs and arrested a man in his 30s in Ennis last  night. In a planned operation, Ennis gardaí searched a house at Kilvoyden, Spancillhill and during the course of the search a quantity of cannabis herb, with an estimated street value (subject to analysis) of €200,000, was discovered. A man in his 30s was arrested at the scene and he is currently detained at Ennis Garda Station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996. He can be detained for up to seven days. The scene remains preserved and a technical examination of the area will take place later today. This is the latest in a number of cannabis finds in Clare in recent times, while gardaí in other parts of the country have also had similar successes in the ongoing fight against drugs.