A WOMAN accused of having £300,000 worth of drugs in her West Belfast home has been refused bail.
Erin Macklin (25) of Glenalina Park in the Whiterock faces charges of possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply and having criminal property.
On Tuesday, Belfast Magistrates’ Court heard police raided her home last Thursday (September 11), recovering three kilos of suspected cocaine graded as having high purity. The drugs were found in a bag on a kitchen counter, a spare bedroom drawer and a handbag in a bedroom.
Macklin was not present when police searched her home.
An investigating detective told the court the potential street value of the cocaine would be "somewhere in the region of £300,000". Opposing bail, he claimed the accused would be held responsible for the loss of the drugs by a criminal network who had imported them into the North.
“She will most likely have to reoffend to make good that debt, otherwise she might face extreme violence,” he predicted.
It was also suggested that she could flee to mainland Europe where her father lives if released from custody.
Defence solicitor Mark Austin said his client was a single parent and others took advantage of the situation.
“She is a very vulnerable female, exactly the type organised crime gangs prey on,” he said. “She hasn’t provided names to police. She believes if she provides details of the people there will be retribution on her.
“She asserts that she is not responsible for the drugs within her house.”
District Judge Steven Keown heard there is currently no DNA or fingerprint evidence linking Macklin to the cocaine.
Mackin was remanded in custody until October 14.
