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Man avoids jail for holding cocaine to pay off drug debt
Summary
Stephen Costello, 46, was sentenced at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court after pleading guilty to the possession of drugs for sale or supply. The court heard that on November 7, 2018, gardaí searched his home on St James Road, Walkinstown, where a bag of white powder was found under a concrete slab in the back garden. Additional items, including scales and a knife with a white substance, were seized from a caravan on the property. Costello admitted to holding the drugs to pay off a drug debt. Analysis confirmed the substance was cocaine with a value of €10,899. Defending counsel highlighted Costello's early guilty plea, his compliance with bail conditions, and his engagement with Addiction Response Dublin, noting clean urine tests and negative breath tests since 2019. Judge Martin Nolan acknowledged these mitigating factors, including the defendant's rehabilitation efforts. The judge determined that the appropriate sentence was three years in prison. However, this sentence was suspended in full. The suspension is conditional upon Costello being of good behaviour and keeping the peace for a period of three years.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Man avoids jail for holding cocaine to pay off drug debt. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- 7 November 2018 Hearing Or Sentence
- November 7, 2018 Incident
- 2022-06-30 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Judge Nolan said the appropriate sentence for the accused is three years in prison but he suspended it in full under the condition that he be of good behaviour and keep the peace for three years.
Places mentioned
Topics
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