Mayo man (34) caught by gardaí with cocaine after high speed chase
A man who was caught with more than €50,000 worth of cocaine following a high-speed chase in which he rammed two garda patrol cars has avoided a prison sentence after making efforts to rehabilitate himself.
Sean O’Kelly, aged 34, of Ballinrobe Road, Westport, but now residing in Galway, pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court to three counts of dangerous driving and possession of drugs for the purpose of sale or supply.
The court heard that gardaí from Galway travelled to Mayo on February 12, 2023, to speak to two co-accused in connection with non-drug-related issues.
Detective Sergeant Paul McNulty had contacted the Garda Armed Support Unit (ASU) as part of the operation and was travelling in an unmarked car between Partry and Westport when he spotted one of the co-accused as the front-seat passenger in a Volkswagen Passat driven by O’Kelly. A third male was a back-seat passenger.
The vehicle was driving at a slow pace and the gardaí followed at a distance.
As the Passat neared Ballinrobe Racecourse, a garda ASU vehicle came into view, and when O’Kelly saw the garda vehicle, he sped off on the wrong side of the road and a high-speed chase ensued.
The Passat built up speed and overtook heavy traffic as it entered Ballinrobe, evading several ASU vehicles as it drove through the town. A woman pushing a pram had to jump out of the way as the car sped along the Creagh Road, Ballinrobe.
The pursuit continued on the N84 towards Castlebar. Gardaí said the ASU vehicle was travelling at 180km per hour and was still failing to gain ground on the Passat.
At a junction close to Partry Garda Station, the Passat collided with an ASU vehicle, causing the jeep to go through the wall of a house.
Attempts were made to apprehend the occupants of the Passat.
O'Kelly reversed into a second ASU vehicle that had arrived at the scene and took off again.
Two other ASU vehicles remained in pursuit as the car continued towards Castlebar.
An elderly man narrowly avoided being struck by the vehicle as it travelled at speed towards Breaffy.
The Passat was travelling on Cottage Road, Breaffy, when it got stuck behind a tractor. The car attempted to overtake the tractor but got stuck in a ditch. A co-accused fled the vehicle but O’Kelly was detained in the car.
A co-accused was spotted discarding a package into a ditch as he exited the car.
A package containing more than 772gms of cocaine was found.
The drugs had an estimated street value of €54,089. A quantity of cocaine was found in the footwell of the driver’s seat and also on O’Kelly’s person. This brought the total value of cocaine seized to €55,565.
The damage caused to the garda vehicles amounted to close to €13,000.
O’Kelly has four previous convictions.
The court heard he was the "least dominant" of the three individuals in the car.
He was addicted to drugs at the time but has been drug-free for two years and is continuing rehabilitation work with the Simon Community in Galway.
Judge Eoin Garavan noted that O’Kelly has made “extraordinary strides" and feared a prison sentence would be "regressive" for his recovery.
The judge imposed a suspended jail term of five years and eight months. O’Kelly also received a 10-year driving ban and was ordered to carry out 240 hours community service.
* Published under the Courts Reporting Scheme.