Drugs courier to be sentenced later

A man who acted as a courier to deliver drugs is to be sentenced in January at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Nicholas Turbett (aged 35) of Homelawn Gardens, Tallaght pleaded guilty to possession of €17,500 worth of cannabis for sale or supply on November 18, 2008 at Blackglen Row in Sandyford.

He also pleaded guilty to making a false insurance disc and tax disc to induce another to accept them as genuine.

Detective Garda David Byrne told Mr Justin McQuade BL, prosecuting, that he stopped Turbett who was driving a Nissan Almera at Blackglen Road at around 9.30 pm.

He said Turbett did not have a driving licence and he noticed the tax and insurance discs were false.

“When I went to search the vehicle Turbett told me there was a bag of ‘grass’ in a blue holdall bag underneath the driver’s seat,” said Det Byrne.

“There were a number of packages of cannabis in the bag and he admitted he was carrying the drugs for someone else.”

Turbett said he was told to leave the car “somewhere” and when he returned to it the drugs were to be already there underneath the driver’s seat.

He said he was being paid “€200 and one ounce of cannabis grass” to deliver the drugs to someone else.

Ms Karen O’Connor BL, defending, said Turbett was a “functioning drug addict at the time” and had been using cannabis since the age of 14.

Judge Joseph Matthews said “the core of this man’s problem is a case of a life long drug addiction.

“Most of his life has been based on drug use with the gateway drug being cannabis.”

“I want to put the case back to see over a period of time could and would he remain drug free,” said Judge Matthews, ordering that Turbett complete a number of drug analysis before January.