Lurgan mother caught with around £50,000 of cannabis is spared jail to care for disabled child

Imposing a two-year jail sentence on Nichaela Maxwell, Judge Patrick Lynch KC warned that while the custody threshold “is clearly passed”, he was suspending the sentence for three years because of her severely disabled daughter.

Having heard the eight-year-old cannot walk or talk, needs help with feeding and requires around the clock care, much of which Maxwell has received medical training for, the judge told Craigavon Crown Court on Tuesday he was satisfied there were exceptional circumstances which allowed him to depart from the guidelines.

At an earlier hearing, 26-year-old Maxwell, from Toberhewny Lodge in Lurgan, entered a guilty plea to being knowingly concerned in the importation of cannabis between April 27 and May 1, 2021.

Opening the facts of the case on Tuesday, prosecuting counsel Joseph Murphy outlined how Royal Mail at East Midlands airport intercepted a package addressed to Maxwell.

That package, due to be delivered to the defendant’s address, was found to contain just under a kilo of herbal cannabis and when the PSNI searched Maxwell’s home the following September, they uncovered further packages of shrink wrapped herbal cannabis.

Mr Murphy said that in total, police found 10.6 kilos of the class B drug, adding that a police drug expert opened that wholesale, the haul was worth “between £40-60,000”.

Arrested and interviewed Maxwell initially denied knowing anything about the drugs but later admitted her guilt.

Mr Murphy told the court that on the police and PPS assessment, Maxwell’s role had been that of a “trusted custodian”.

He conceded the prosecution could not gainsay defence submissions there were elements of “pressure and coercion” for Maxwell to be involved or that she “did not know the scale of the operation” she was involved in.

Defence counsel Peter Canavan highlighted that Maxwell had entered guilty pleas, had no previous convictions for drugs and there was medical evidence that if she was to be jailed, her absence “would have a life-changing impact on her daughter”.

Imposing the suspended sentence, Judge Lynch told Maxwell “it’s a very serious matter” and warned her not to reoffend or she would have to serve the two years.