Bid to establish if teens selling drugs worth €15,000 were working alone

GARDAÍ were yesterday trying to establish if two 15-year-olds caught with a substantial amount of cocaine were working for another dealer or themselves.

Senior officers said it would mark a new low if the children were actually running such a large-scale operation on their own.

“We’d have to say what the hell is going on if two 15-year-olds are involved in this level of drug dealing. It’s absolutely frightening,” said a garda source.

The teenagers were caught trying to sell €15,000 worth of cocaine in a park in Clondalkin, west Dublin, on Saturday night. The cocaine had been split up into bags and was ready for sale. The local drugs unit had the area in Corkagh Park under surveillance. “These two young fellas were seen acting suspiciously. They were searched and the drugs were found,” said the source.

A follow-up search of a house in the area resulted in the seizure of a further €55,000 worth of cocaine, weighing scales and mixing agents, bringing the overall quantity seized to 1kg.

The teens, one from Clondalkin and the other from Tallaght, were arrested and taken to Clondalkin Garda Station. The teenagers, who were not known to gardaí for any reason, were questioned in the company of their parents. They were later released.

The case could go to the Director of Public Prosecutions or the Garda Juvenile Liaison Programme, which diverts children from the courts system.

“We are trying to find out if they were working for themselves or for someone else,” said the source. “It’s unlikely, but not impossible, that you would get 15-year-olds operating this scale of drug dealing by themselves.”