‘Ye have nothing on me’, says accused in drugs case

EVIDENCE was given of a man throwing away €5,000 worth of heroin to avoid detection in a search but now he has denied ever having the drugs in the first place.

Mark Corcoran, aged 55, of flat 3, Ivy House, Grattan Hill, Cork, was brought before Cork District Court charged with possession of drugs, having them for sale or supply, and obstruction of a search.

Detective Garda Patrick O’Sullivan testified that on June 18 Mr Corcoran was stopped at Lower Grattan Hill. On being informed a search was about to be carried out he ran and threw bags away. The bags were recovered and they contained €5,000 worth of heroin.

When interviewed he said he had no drugs on him and did not discard any drugs.

Charged that he obstructed or impeded Detective Garda Dermot Crowley searching under the Misuse of Drugs Act in that he threw away suspected drugs which were in his hand into a grass/hedge area and attempted to evade gardaí, he replied: “Ye have nothing on me. This is bullshit. It was not a hedge, it was a shed roof, get it right.”

Judge Mary Dorgan acceded to defence solicitor Diarmuid Kelleher’s application for bail. The imposed bail conditions included these terms: no intoxicants, no offending, reside at his home at Ivy House, to sign on at Mayfield garda station twice a day, between 9am and 1pm and between 3pm and 9pm, and to keep a curfew to be home between 10pm and 6am.