A 42-year-old father of four has been jailed for eight years after he pleaded guilty to his part in the biggest ever heroin seizure in Cork city following the seizure by gardai of three kilos of heroin with an estimated street value of €418,600.
Derek Keenan, of Harbour View Road in Knocknaheeny, Cork, pleaded guilty to the possession of heroin and possession of heroin for sale and supply at his home in the city on July 9th, 2020.
Members of Cork City Divisional Drugs Squad recovered close to three kilos of the drug following a surveillance operation at the house of the middle-aged man.
Det Sgt Michael O'Halloran told Cork Circuit Criminal Court that a warrant had been obtained to search the home of Mr Keenan.
At 11pm on July 9th 2020 gardai observed Mr Keenan sitting in his car in the driveway of his home on the northside of Cork city. They noticed another male getting in to the car.
Text messages
Gardai approached the vehicle where they spotted a number of bags. The bags were seized and were found to contain 2.99 kg of heroin. Mr Keenan and his co accused were interviewed. Keenan made certain admissions in relation to his role in the drug operation.
Mr Keenan's mobile phone was confiscated and examined. It contained text messages which related to drug dealing. He told gardai he was awaiting instruction from another party on what to do with the heroin. He alleged that he had received threats in relation to a €6,000 drug debt.
Dgt Sgt O'Halloran said that Keenan, who has 29 previous convictions, was a "key player" in the drugs trade in the city and that his actions brought a lot of heroin in to the city. He informed the court that Keenan was caught "red-handed."
Defending barrister Donal O'Sullivan said that his client co-operated with gardai and made admissions of guilt. However, Dgt Sgt O'Halloran said while this was correct Keenan hadn't facilitated bringing the investigation to another level by giving further information on the drugs trade.
'Blameless life'
Mr O'Sullivan said that his client had lived a "blameless life" until his mid-30s when he became involved in drug taking. "It is exceptional that somebody (before the courts with this offence) would get to their mid-30s with no problems. He is an addict. He is the father of four children and has worked in construction.”
Mr O’Sullivan insisted his client was a person without the obvious trappings of wealth. There was no suggestion of there being bundles of cash in the house. He stated that Keenan suffered from a “deep-seated” drug addiction which had changed the course of his life.
Judge Sean O’Donnabhain described the drugs seizure as “very significant”.
“He (Keenan) was a vital necessary part of drug dealing in the city. To suggest he was involved to pay off a €6,000 debt is somewhat fanciful. There is also no excuse to say he is an addict.”
Judge O’Donnabhain noted that Mr Keenan had been dealt with leniently by the courts for drugs offences on two previous occasions. Taking the guilty plea in to consideration he jailed Keenan for ten years suspending the last two years of the sentence.
