A 33-year-old found with heroin in an NUI Galway toilet received a five month suspended sentence this week and was warned to stay away from the campus grounds.
Damien McElroy with an address at 30 John Coogan Park, Newcastle, was summoned to appear before Galway District Court on Monday where he pleaded guilty to being in possession of diamophine at NUI Galway on February 14, 2012.
The court heard that a garda had been on duty at Galway Garda Station when he received a call from security staff at the university. The security complained that there were three men acting suspiciously in the gents’ toilets. When the garda arrived at the scene he found the defendant and two other men and during a search McElroy was found to be in possession of a small quantity of heroin. The heroin which had been on tinfoil was sent for analysis and results showed that it was diamorphine.
Defence solicitor Valerie Corcoran explained that her client, who is already serving a 21 month sentence, had in his possession only traces or “remnants” of the drug on the tinfoil. She said that McElroy has difficulties with addiction which he is attempting to deal with while in prison.
“He had no business being at NUI Galway with heroin,” said Judge Mary Fahy, who then convicted McElroy and imposed the five month prison sentence which was then suspended for three years on condition that he enter into his own bond of €300 to be of good behaviour and stay away from NUI Galway and its environs.
