Judge convicts Kerry man for €1,200 worth of drugs following raid during Rose of Tralee
The KerrymanA drug raid during the Rose of Tralee festival resulted in gardaí finding €1,201 worth of cocaine, cannabis and cannabis resin in the home of a Tralee man, the Tralee District Court has heard.
The court heard gardaí stopped David Donovan (50) of Apartment 1/10 Pembroke Street, Tralee on Pembroke Street on August 18, 2024 as a drugs investigation unit searched his apartment.
The unit found Mr Donovan had €372 of cannabis, € 811 of cocaine and €18 of cannabis resin in his possession.
Mr Donovan’s solicitor, Brendan Ahern, told the court his client had lost his job as a scaffolder and became homeless.
“He had to give up from wear and tear on his hips,” said Mr Ahern.
Mr Donovan had told his solicitor he was couch surfing at the time of the raid and the drugs in the apartment were not his own, although he had sold drugs to pay for his own addiction.
Mr Donovan had previous convictions for minor traffic offences and a 2017 conviction for possession.
“He’s only asking for any break the court might give him,” said Mr Ahern.
Judge Catherine Ryan noted the seven years since Mr Donovan’s last drug-related conviction.
“Remarkable that he has stayed out of trouble for that period of time,” she said, adding she did not know whether it was by way of good behaviour or not getting caught.
She convicted and fined Mr Donovan €500 with a suspended sentence of two months.
““Obviously, there are concerns with the amount of cocaine,” said the judge. "These are very serious matters and he will go to prison on the next occasion.”