A 26-year-old Thurles, Co. Tipperary man, named as Mr Dean Champion, formerly with an address at Wolfe Tone Place, Liberty Square, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, has appeared in court having been first arrested on December 9th, 2021 last, following advertisements offering cannabis for sale.
At the time of his arrest Mr Champion was residing at an apartment on Washington St, in Cork city and had advertised cannabis using Snapchat, latter the social media messaging app that allows users to send messages that self-destruct after a few seconds.
The cannabis being offered by Mr Champion was being offered for sale in various weights.
Cork Garda Divisional Drugs Unit attended at his accommodation on Washington Street, armed with a warrant granting the right to search the home of Mr Campion. The accused was located, present outside the property, thus allowing Gardaí, to use his key to gain entry to the accommodation.
On entry, Garda officers recovered €43,000 worth of cannabis, together with €200 in cash. Mr Campion was immediately arrested at the scene and on being later interviewed; eventually pleaded guilty to charges made against him and cooperated with interviewing Gardaí.
In Court, presiding Judge Mr James McCourt stated that the quantity of over 2kg of cannabis, brought the seizure to well over the €13,000 value which allows for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years. However, having considering the full factors in the case, Judge McCourt imposed a fine of €2,000 with a suspended 4-year sentence on condition that Mr Champion remains of good behaviour.
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