A north Belfast man who stored high-purity cocaine in his boilerhouse for 'experienced criminals' has been jailed.
John Dennis McIlroy, from Shanlieve Park, appeared at Belfast Crown Court via a videolink with his solicitor's office.
After imposing a 14-month sentence - divided equally between custody and licence - Judge Stephen Fowler told the 52-year old that he had to surrender himself tomorrow morning.
Crown prosecutor Rosemary Walsh said cannabis and cocaine were located during a search of McIlroy's home on July 22 last year.
Officers located a small quantity of cocaine and small amounts of cannabis in the property, and when an outside boilerhouse was searched, 740 grams of cocaine with an 86 per cent purity was located, along with four kilos of cannabis.
McIlroy told police he was a heavy cannabis user but refused to answer questions about the cocaine.
He later admitted that he sold small amounts of cannabis to friends, and made the case he was asked to store the cocaine for a two-week period, but that his house was raided after a week.
Defence barrister Stephen Toal said his client had "abused drugs for a long time" but that he was now drug-free.
He said McIlroy raised his daughter as a single parent and was a man trying to live a good life but one who "very unfortunately stored these drugs for experienced criminals".
As he sentenced McIlroy for offences including possession of cocaine with intent to supply, Judge Fowler noted that in Northern Ireland, the street purity of the Class A drug is usually around 10 per cent - compared to the 86 per cent found in the boilerhouse.
Also noted by the judge was McIlroy's lack of criminal record, his remorse and the recent steps he has taken to tackle his addiction.
Citing his involvement as "a lesser but very necessary role in the overall operation," Judge Fowler spoke of the "significant quantity of high purity cocaine" and the "havoc" caused by cocaine addiction.
He ordered the destruction of the drugs seized.