A man accused of dealing cannabis who is ‘crying out for help’ has been granted bail, at Derry Magistrate’s Court.
An anonymity order was granted by District Judge Barney McElholm due to the generalised threat that exists against drug dealers in Derry.
A co-accused who made admissions in the case was released on police bail to appear in court at a later date.
The court was told that the man has been accused of suppling Class B drug cannabis and three similar charges and a police officer confirmed that she could connect him to the charges.
Outlining the case, the officer said police received information and therefore carried out a search under the misuse of drugs act at a property in the city. A cannabis smell was detected when police entered the property and seven ounces of cannabis was found with an estimated street value of £4,000.
The PSNI officer said the drugs had been divided into deal bags and vacuum packed, and there were scales and other paraphernalia. She told the court there was also a ‘strap list’ showing that the defendant was owed £1,000 ‘in drug debts’.
During police interview the accused made full admissions and accepted he has a cannabis addiction. Bail was objected to due to a risk of further offending and the officer also revealed that the defendant had spent almost £1,300 on cannabis in a ten-day period.
If released she believed the defendant would ‘fall back into the cycle and would continue to sell’.
Defence solicitor Gareth McFadden said his client made ‘full and frank admissions’. He told the court that the defendant has Crohn’s disease - a lifelong condition in which parts of the digestive system become inflamed – and had been supplying to a limited group of people.
It was submitted that the accused uses cannabis himself to ‘regulate his own condition’ and Mr McFadden suggested any risk could be reduced by imposing strict bail conditions. He said several electronic devices had to be examined and forensics carried out and the officer conceded this could take 3-6 months to complete.
The defence solicitor said the defendant’s partner is thirty-six weeks pregnant and his client is her carer. He described the accused as a ‘man crying out for help’ and suggested a bail condition could be put in place which stipulates he must visit his GP upon his release.
District Judge Barney McElholm granted the defendant his own bail of £750 with conditions that included having no mobile phone, a prohibition on non-prescribed drugs, a curfew and electronic tag and he must have no contact with his co-accused in the case.
He also ordered that the man must attend an appointment with his GP to engage fully and adhere strictly to any course of treatment or counselling advised by his doctor.
The accused will appear at a court sitting again at the beginning of May.
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