A BRITISH serviceman who acted as a storeman for more “sinister individuals” by stashing a bag of cannabis worth over €15,000 in his attic in Southill has been jailed for two years. The O’Malley Park home of David McCormack (52), was searched by gardaÍ on July 6, 2010 as a result of confidential information received by the divisional drug unit at Roxboro Garda station.
At Limerick Circuit Court last week, Judge Carroll Moran heard that the garda search yielded a black refuse sack containing almost a kilo and a half of cannabis hidden under insulation in the attic.
The court was told that Mr McCormack was “put under pressure” to act as a storeman and did not have any of the trappings of wealth associated with drug dealing. However he was unable to identify the person who asked him to store the drugs as he was in a “considerable amount of fear”.
The defendant was a separated father who was an ex service man in the UK before returning to his native Limerick after the breakup of his marriage.
He had no previous convictions and hadn’t come to garda attention before.
Defence counsel, Andrew Sexton, SC, said his client had “reached a good age before this matter came to light and he had remained out of trouble since. It was a moment of weakness when he was put under pressure and in fear.” He added that “prison would send him downhill as he had a lot to cope with in life through personal tragedies”.
Imposing a two year prison sentence, Judge Moran said it was accepted that Mr McCormack acted as a “storeman” but he had to impose a prison sentence because if he didn’t it would expose other vulnerable people to such pressure.
