Drug trial of Blarney man resumes today

The trial of a man accused of having over €100,000 worth of heroin for sale or supply and other drugs charges in August 2016 commenced today.

The trial of a man accused of having over €100,000 worth of heroin for sale or supply and other drugs charges in August 2016 commenced yesterday.

Garrett Hill of The View, Gleann Na Rí, Tower, Blarney, Co Cork, pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.

Mr Hill, 38, is accused of having heroin, for sale or supply at Cork Builders Providers property in Togher on August 25, 2016, and having heroin for sale or supply at an apartment at Blarney Shopping Centre on the same date.

Siobhán Lankford, prosecution senior counsel, gave the six women and six men of the jury hearing the case before Judge Brian O’Callaghan an outline of what the prosecution would be alleging in the course of the trial but she stressed that this was not itself evidence.

Ms Lankford said members of An Garda Síochána were watching an apartment at Blarney Shopping Centre, where a particular man – not Garrett Hill – was living. Ms Lankford said it was alleged that the defendant arrived in a grey Seat car with this man and they went to the apartment and drove away to Cork Builders Providers car park where other gardaí would say they saw a Volkswagen van park beside the Seat.

It would be alleged by the prosecution that Mr Hill got out of his car carrying a package, got into the passenger seat of the Volkswagen and the glove compartment was seen to open.

Gardaí arrived, Mr Hill was arrested and the package in the glove compartment was found to contain €7,700 worth of heroin. And that in a follow-up search of the apartment in Blarney, €96,000 worth of heroin was found. All of these allegations were made by Ms Lankford and so far no evidence has been given in the trial which resumes today.