A man who pleaded guilty to possession of almost €700 worth of heroin with intent to supply thanked the judge in the District Court this week (May 12 ) after he he learned the prison sentence he was currently serving would not be added to.
Albert Marsh (30 ), with an address at Tower View, Battery Heights, Athlone attended court from prison where he is serving a three year sentence issued in Mullingar Circuit Court in September for similar offences.
This week, the court heard from Detective Garda Aidan Lyons how he searched Marsh’s house on August 4 where he found “the defendant and others in the kitchen with a quantity of brown powder and weighing scales”. The brown powder was subsequently proven to be a quarter ounce (eight grammes ) of heroin which Det Garda Lyons said was worth “between six and seven hundred euro”.
Marsh, a heroin addict at the time, told Det Garda Lyons half was for personal use and the other half for sale. Marsh had 24 previous convictions, of which four were for possession with intent to supply, and three were just for possession of drugs.
Marsh’s solicitor, Mr Tony McLynn, clarified his client’s present custody status for the court, and pointed out that though he had been given a three year sentence in September 2009, it had been backdated to May 2009 and had the final year of the sentence suspended.With remission and good behaviour, this gave Marsh a projected release date of November 8 this year, the court learned.
“He has done a detox programme in the Midland prison and is now clear of all drugs, including methadone,” said Mr McLynn, submitting a doctor’s report to support this.
Accepting this, Judge John Neilan sentenced March to 11 months in prison for each of the two charges he faced, but ordered them run concurrently with his present sentence, which began on May 13, 2009.
“I’m obliged,” said Mr McLynn.
“Thank you, judge,” said the defendant as he was led off to complete his sentence.
