A 24-YEAR-OLD man facing a drugs charge brought by the DPP on foot of the Garda investigation into the death of model Katy French in December 2007, has been sent forward for trial to the Circuit Criminal Court.
At Navan District Court yesterday, Russell Memery, with an address at Yellow Clay Manor, Navan, was told the Circuit Court was next sitting in Trim on the May 12th.
It is alleged that on December 1st, 2007 at the Statoil service station in Bracetown, Clonee, Co Meath he conspired with persons not before the court to possess a controlled drug – cocaine – to supply to another.
State solicitor Michael Finnegan said the DPP consented to the matter being sent forward. The DPP did not object to Mr Memery being remanded on his own bail of €1,000.
Judge Tom Fitzpatrick ordered that Mr Memery sign on weekly at Navan Garda station and surrender his passport.
The judge extended legal aid to cover the Circuit Court.
Ms French died in hospital on December 6th, 2007 after collapsing into a coma several days previously. A postmortem revealed she had suffered brain damage and traces of cocaine were found in her system. She collapsed at a friend’s house on December 2nd after allegedly taking cocaine.
A Garda investigation led to the arrest of a number of people and a file was sent to the DPP last year.