A 20-year-old man from Crossmolina who was discovered with 473 BZP tablets was this week sentenced to three months’ detention for possession and supply of the drugs.
It was outlined at Ballina District Court on Tuesday, that in December 2009 the house of Mark Ryder, 10 Chapel View, Chapel Street, Crossmolina, was searched (Ryder resided with his parents ). BZP tablets to the value of €2,375 were discovered under the defendant’s mattress in his bedroom. Digital weighing scales were also discovered in a car outside the house, as was a knife used to cut cannabis.
Ryder admitted buying the tablets in Sligo, but claimed they were fake. The tablets were sent for analysis which showed that they were drugs.
Michael Bohan, solicitor for the defendant, said his client has had psychiatric difficulties since he was 14 and fell in with the wrong crowd since his family moved to Crossmolina from Ballina. Ryder has completed a course in Westport and has been accepted on a course in Limerick and has also attended substance misuse counselling and an anger management course. The defendant has previous convictions.
For sale and supply, Judge Mary Devins convicted and fined Ryder €1,000 and sentenced him to three months detention. For possession, Ryder was sentenced to three months’ detention to run concurrently.
