Man caught dealing heroin on Cork City bridge gets six months

Sergeant Dave Delea stated that at noon on 24 September 2021, the police officer on patrol at St Vincent’s Bridge in Cork saw him standing in the middle of the bridge taking several small plastic packets from his mouth and holding them in his palm. of the hand.

“As soon as Mr Kuznecovas took the items out of his mouth, approximately five to six people gathered around him and he began handing them the plastic packets while they gave him money in return.

“Gardaí approached and said he would be searched under the Misuse of Drugs Act. He immediately began swallowing vigorously and all attempts to retrieve the items he was swallowing were unsuccessful.

Sergeant Delea said: “Garda Derry O’Brien began searching a bag over his shoulder, which contained a large plastic bag containing suspected diamorphine.

He said it wasn’t his and that he had swallowed all the heroin he had.

The street value of the heroin in his suitcase was 430 euros. He had a previous conviction for drug trafficking and several counts of possession of drugs for personal use.

Defense lawyer Eddie Burke said: “This goes back to September 24, 2021. He is a 38-year-old man from Lithuania who has been in Ireland for five years. He came here with the promise of a job.

“When he arrived he was given accommodation in Kilmallock in Limerick but there was no job available for him. He ended up getting involved in heroin use and started trying to pay off debts by engaging in this behavior.”

Judge Mary Dorgan said she needed to take into account that he was actively dealing drugs and imposed a six-month prison sentence.