Reformed drug addict given three years for selling cocaine

A reformed drug addict has been jailed for three years for selling cocaine after Judge Katherine Delahunt described him as "an active and willing participant in this heinous trade".

Paul Molloy (aged 35), with an address at Fassaugh Avenue, Cabra, admitted to gardaí that he had been selling cocaine for about 18 months after €10,890 worth of the drugs was found in the house. Four shotgun cartridges were also found, concealed in a chimney breast.

Molloy told gardaí that "someone" had given him the ammunition and he "just took it" because he had been paranoid after a friend of his was killed. He admitted that €1,300 found in the search had been from the proceeds of selling drugs.

Detective Garda Noel Smith said that Molloy had applied for a license for a shotgun because he intended to take up shooting as a sporting activity but his application was refused.

Molloy pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of the drugs for sale or supply at his home and possession of the shot gun cartridges without a valid license on February 18, 2007. He had five previous road traffic convictions that were all dealt with in the District Court.

Judge Delahunt said that Molloy presented in court as a drug dealer who had got involved in selling cocaine "purely for commercial gain".

She said that, as a reformed drug addict, he would have had a "particular knowledge" of the effects of cocaine on people and the community.