Woman had €70k worth of cocaine

A woman who was caught in a taxi with €70,000 worth of cocaine against a background of drugs in her family home wept and spoke of her terror of going to prison yesterday.

Jennifer Heaphy, 22, of 59 Kerryhall Rd, Fairhill, Cork, faced sentencing at Cork Circuit Criminal Court yesterday for possession of cocaine for sale or supply at Sallybrook, Glanmire, Co Cork, on March 23, at a time when its value exceeded €13,000, the threshold figure for a 10-year mandatory sentence unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Detective Sergeant Lar O’Brien said that, in the course of a surveillance operation, Heaphy was seen receiving a package from a man who got out of a car and approached the taxi in which she was sitting. Drugs squad gardaí moved in and stopped the taxi as it was driven from the scene. The accused was found with the kilo of cocaine in her possession.

Det Sgt O’Brien said that, more than any other woman in Cork, Heaphy would have been clearly aware of the consequences of carrying that quantity of drugs.

Jennifer Heaphy had a previous drug-dealing conviction in relation to a much smaller value of ecstasy tablets.

Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin said: “The probation report says she is entrenched in the world of drugs from a young age. This happened in March 2013 and we are still in the house.”

Det Sgt O’Brien said, “Yes, that is a large part of the problem. She is 23 and she resides in the family home in Kerryhall Road.”

Heaphy will be sentenced on February 27.