Man caught storing €20,000 worth of cocaine in protein tub

A Waterford man has been sentenced to three years and nine months in prison for storing nearly €20,000 worth of cocaine in a protein tub in his bedroom.

Kieran O'Mara, 38, with an address of 283 St John’s Park, pleaded guilty to one offence under Section 15(a) of the Misuse of Drugs Act for the possession of €19,386 worth of cocaine, which Gardaí found during a search of his residence without him in attendance.

O’Mara presented to Waterford Garda Station in June 2023 and accepted full responsibility for the cocaine, saying he was storing the drugs to repay a drug debt.

The Waterford man told arresting Gardaí that he owed “quite a lot” in drug debts and had been storing the drugs for a period of three months prior to the arrest.

The court heard that O’Mara suffered a difficult period following the death of his father and another family grievance, which acted as a “catalyst” for significant drug use leading to the debt.

The court heard that the arrest was a “wake-up call” for O’Mara who has made significant changes in his life following the incident and started a prolonged period of sobriety and was making public contributions by volunteering.

O’Mara had five previous convictions, accrued over a three-year period from 2005 to 2008.

Presiding over the sentencing, Judge Eugene O’Kelly said the offence was placed on the middle-degree of severity and set a headline sentence of five years.

Judge O’Kelly reduced the sentence to three years and nine months due to O’Mara’s early guilty plea, the explanation of the drug debt and the early presentation to Gardaí.

One year and nine months of the sentence will be suspended.