‘They were laughing at his death’
Nicole Ryan also criticised the punishment handed down, but her fury focused on the behaviour of the accused over the past week’s proceedings at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.
“They had 10 months to contact us and say sorry, or say something to us. But not one ounce of remorse has been shown,” said Nicole, whose brother Alex, 18, died in hospital after attending a drink and drugs-fuelled orgy in Cork’s Greenmount area last January.
Harry Clifton, aged 29, of 11 St Finbarr’s Place, Proby’s Quay, Cork, yesterday received a two-year sentence with 18 months suspended. He had pleaded guilty to having N-bomb for the purpose of supply and related charges.
Ruairí Maher, aged 22, of 12 Ballycurrane, Thurles, Co Tipperary, received a suspended two-year jail sentence. He had admitted conspiring with another to possess a controlled drug for the purpose of sale or supply, namely N-bomb.
Jessica O’Connor, aged 20, of Rosebank House, Ballyhar, Killarney, Co Kerry, also received a suspended two-year sentence. She had admitted having N-bomb for the purpose of sale or supply.
O’Connor had been at a weekend-long party with friends and they had decided to get their hands on some kind of hallucinogenic drug. Maher, who sourced 12 doses of the N-bomb from Clifton for €80, told O’Connor he could get her 12 trips for €120 — making a €40 profit by the transaction.
Through these channels, the drug was brought to the party in Greenmount.
Apart from the drug, there had been evidence of people attending the party consuming huge quantities of alcohol, including wine, spirits, and tequila.
After the sentencing at Washington Street Courthouse, Ms Ryan stated: “It is heartbreaking. It is such a terrible week for us.
“But they [the defendants] were actually laughing at us. They were basically laughing at his death.
“In my opinion, they have absolutely no regard for human life at all.
“People do have disregard for drugs. But the people who sell these things have to be held accountable.
“They were all young, they were all stupid, but to say they were remorseful was not true.
“They didn’t show one ounce of remorse towards Alex.”
With two of the accused getting wholly suspended sentences, Ms Ryan also stated: “What kind of message are we sending out?
“We are essentially telling people that no matter what you do — selling drugs — you are going to get a suspended sentence.
“We are basically telling people you are not going to be punished for what you do.”
The investigation had taken place against the background of Mr Ryan’s death after he sniffed the synthetic drug.
Detective Garda Daniel McEnery said the investigation commenced following the admission of several young people to hospital after they had taken a drug at a party in Greenmount. Most of the people at the party were students aged around 20.
Judge Gerard O’Brien said Maher and O’Connor and the late Mr Ryan sought out Clifton with the express purpose of purchasing an illegal product that would be as potent as possible.
He said they submitted that they did not know what they were getting but he said their recklessness was culpable.
The judge said the deceased Mr Ryan did not have to be induced, coerced or cajoled into taking the drug during what he described as young people in an orgy of drink and drugs consumption, a drug which he said had been sourced from dubious, invisible, others.
Judge O’Brien said people were bleating on about not knowing what was in the drug, but he said that very many illegal drugs were full of rat poison.
Ms Ryan, meanwhile, said her family was shocked that many of the people who attended the tragic party last January attended court to show their support to the three defendants.
Not one of them had attended Cork University Hospital last January as her brother had fought in vain for his life.
She said she will never forget the sight of her brother fighting in vain for his life in the intensive care unit.
“He was lying in the hospital bed.
“There were tubes everywhere, in his arms and from his mouth. It was awful to see.
“We hoped and prayed that he would pull through but there was too much damage.”
Her family, she said, will forever be haunted by the sight of her brother slowly losing his battle for survival in front of their eyes.
“A lot of our hopes and dreams died with Alex. There is not a day that we don’t think about him and what a terrible loss we have suffered.”
They later donated the teen’s organs, with four people effectively being saved.
The family now wants to help support the anti-drugs campaign in Ireland.
“Alex was a wonderful person,” she said.
“He had a beautiful smile and he was as kind-hearted a soul as you could ever meet.
“But he made one very bad decision. That mistake took his life and changed our lives forever.
“Alex paid for his mistake with his life.
“We don’t want any other Irish family to suffer our loss.”
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