Heroin teen to spend Christmas with dad

A teenager who stored heroin valued €314,000 and cocaine in the family sitting room has been granted compassionate bail by Judge Frank O’Donnell to spend Christmas with his widower father.

Mr Christopher Walsh, whose other son died of a drug overdose aged 10, pleaded with Judge O’Donnell to allow his only remaining child home to spend the first anniversary of his wife’s death on December 22 and Christmas with him.

James Walsh (aged 18) was remanded in custody last month by Judge O’Donnell for sentence in February for possession of heroin worth over €314,000 and cocaine valued €100 in the family home at Cherry Orchard Parade, Ballyfermot on February 12, 2006, when he was 16 years old.

When Mr Walsh asked Judge O’Donnell to allow his son home for Christmas he said:: "Its not for him, its for me. I guarantee that he will be back. I am pleading with the court to give him a chance."

Judge O’Donnell noted that Christmas was a "vulnerable" time to be released from custody but granted Walsh bail from December 22 to 27 on condition that he reside with his father, observe a curfew from 9 pm to 9 am and sign on daily at Ballyfermot Garda Station.

Garda Tara Corrigan agreed with defence counsel, Ms Caroline Biggs BL, that Walsh was terrified of a sinister criminal who forced him to hold the drugs for him in repayment of the "debt" arising out of "property" he had found belonging to this man.

Garda Corrigan told prosecuting counsel, Mr Paul Greene BL, that when she discovered the heroin and cocaine, the teenager’s father, became very angry with him.

Walsh said he was holding them because he had "a financial obligation to a certain man" and during garda interview he showed signs that he was very afraid of this man.

Ms Biggs said Walsh had a very tragic family history. His brother died of a drug overdose when he was ten-years-of-age and since his arrest his mother had died. His father had admitted that his own alcohol abuse was damaging to the family.

She said that while Walsh was "not of high intelligence" he had completed his Junior Certificate and had worked with his father in his haulage business.

Ms Biggs noted that Walsh was only 16-years-of-age at the time of the offence and that he held the drugs because he was "fearful and terrified".