No jail for woman in €5m heroin court case

A woman whose then boyfriend was storing €5m worth of heroin in their home has been given a four-year suspended sentence for allowing him to hide the drugs there.

Melissa O'Shea (aged 22) with an address at Colbertsfort, Belgard Road, pleaded guilty to knowingly allowing the possession of the drugs at their rented home on January 12, 2007. She had no previous convictions and was not known to the gardaí.

Her now ex-boyfriend William Byrne (aged 24) was given a 10-year sentence after he pleaded guilty to possession of the drugs for sale or supply. He had three previous convictions which included a 12-month suspended sentence for drug dealing.

The couple have two children together, one of whom was 18 months old at the time. O'Shea has since finished the relationship and has returned to her family home.

Judge Katherine Delahunt said that O’Shea was naive and motivated by loyalty to the father of her children.

She said it was clear that she had been very much in the dark about the majority of the heroin but did know that there were some drugs were in the house.

Det Gda Ormonde agreed with Mr Patrick Marrinan SC (with Mr Pieter Le Vert BL) defending O'Shea, that she strongly objected to Kennedy being in their home and was greatly concerned about heroin being smoked around her baby daughter.

He accepted that she was not familiar with the drug industry in any way and that she could be described as naive.

Det Gda Ormonde further accepted that O’Shea was strongly motivated by loyalty for her partner and was not aware of the extent of Byrne's involvement.

Mr Marrinan said his client was from a very good and decent family in the Tallaght area. She became pregnant at 18 years old and then moved in with Byrne to the house where the drugs were found.

Ms Aileen Donnelly SC (with Mr William Nolan BL) defending Byrne, said he had a heavy drug addiction at the time which predated the incident and was "really the driving force and significant cause of his involvement in this offence".

Judge Delahunt acknowledged that two probation reports before the court indicated that O’Shea "had done great work" since evidence was first heard in January.

She suspended the entire sentence on the condition that O’Shea liaise with the probation service for 18 months after she warned her that if she did not stay on the path she was on she would go to prison.

Detective Garda Michael Ormonde told Mr Remy Farrell BL, prosecuting, that gardaí accepted that O'Shea only knew about one kilo of heroin found in the sitting room and was not aware of the remaining 24 kilos found in a sports bag and suitcase in the kitchen.

Byrne took full responsibility for the drugs and told gardaí that he had been storing them in his home for €500.

A co-accused Thomas Kennedy (aged 30) with an address at Westbourne Park, Clondalkin, received a 10-year sentence in March 2008 from Judge Desmond Hogan after he pleaded guilty to the possession of heroin for sale or supply.

Gardaí found keys for padlocks on both the suitcase and the sports bag sitting next to Kennedy. He initially denied any knowledge of the drugs but it was later accepted that he brought the drugs to the house.