A MAN found with €600 with of cannabis has been fined and also banned from driving for four years.
Edward Laskowski, of Ard Glas, Long Lane, Letterkenny was before Letterkenny District Court on charges relating to separate offences.
On April 8, 2020, at 7.20pm, Garda Hennigan and Garda O’Keefe stopped a vehicle at Ballyraine. Gardai detected a strong smell of cannabis from the vehicle.
A search was carried out and a total of 29.6 grammes of cannabis, with an estimated street value of €600, was located. Laskowski made admission and told Gardaí that the stash was ‘to feed his own habit’.
Garda Hennigan made a lawful demand for Laskowski to produce his insurance, but documentation was not forthcoming.
Laskowski was ask before the court on a charge of possession a controlled drug, cannabis, on February 15, 2019. During a search of a premises at Ard Glas, a small deal bag of cannabis, to the value of €30, was found. Laskowski, the court heard, was fully co-operative.
The accused was also charged in connection with an incident at Dunnes Stores, Oldtown, Letterkenny, on October 28, 2018. A hit-and-run collision was reported after a vehicle crashed into another car in the carpark. Laskowski told Gardaí that he thought he had hit something, but was unsure. ‘Very minor’ damage was caused to the other vehicle.
Solicitor for Laskowski, Mr Frank Dorrian, said Laskowski’s wife called informing him that she was feeling unwell. “He was rushing back to the house,” Mr Dorrian said. “He reversed quickly and drove forward again. He thought that he banged into the kerb.”
Laskowski, a 45-year-old married father-of-two, is currently unemployed. He has a previous convictions for driving without insurance.
For the incident at Dunnes Stores, Laskowski was convicted of driving without insurance. Judge Paul Kelly fined Laskowski €200, giving him six months to pay, and also disqualified him from driving for four years.
For the incident at Ballyraine, Laskowski was convicted of driving without insurance, he was fined €200 and given six months to pay, while a four-year disqualification was also imposed.
For the possession of cannabis with the intention to sell or supply, Laskowski was fined €250.
A charge of possession of cannabis on February 15, 2019 was marked taken into consideration.
Recognisance was fixed on Laskowski’s own bond of €250.