Peter Roy Barlow, of Fish Parade, was the legal occupier of the Havannah Street home.

He appeared before Bathurst Local Court on Monday charged with several counts of possessing a prohibited drug and one charge of possessing a prescribed prohibited substance.

The drugs included amphetamine, methadone, heroin, cannabis, cannabis seeds and five Deptrin tablets.

He also appeared on charges of possessing cannabis and cannabis seeds and failing to give way at the intersection of Piper and Bentinck streets on January 23 this year.

Although magistrate Jan Stevenson acknowledged that Mr Barlow had broken good behaviour bonds in the past, she said he was a long-term drug user and ordered him to be of good behaviour for a period of 18 months with probation and parole supervision. He was also fined a total of $800.

The court was told paramedics attended the Havannah Street address on July 1 last year to treat a man regarding a suspected drug overdose.

The police were contacted and due to suspicions that the man died as a result of an overdose a crime scene was established and a search warrant granted.

The court was told that police located a black leather case containing a large amount of prohibited drugs which were individually packaged. On further inspection a birth certificate and licence in the name of Peter Roy Barlow and a quantity of money was seized.

When interviewed, the defendant admitted to owning the drugs, stating that they were for his personal use.

Mr Barlow told police he was going on holidays and had stockpiled the drugs for the trip so he didn’t have to source them in another town. He said the Deptrin had been prescribed for his father, who had recently died.

Mr Barlow’s criminal record showed a history of drug abuse dating back to 1973, when he was charged with possessing and smoking Indian hemp. His record shows that in the years that followed he moved from cannabis to amphetamines, then morphine and finally to heroin.

He was represented in the court by solicitor Tim Cain, who said the defendant had tried to resuscitate the deceased and had made the necessary calls, although he had left the house by the time the paramedics and police arrived.

Ms Stevenson asked Mr Cain what his client was going to do about his addiction.

“That’s a good question,” he replied.

Mr Cain told the court Mr Barlow was the owner of some property in Bathurst and has sold it.

“His father, who was a significant member of the Bathurst community, passed away in 2010,” he said. “His intention is to leave the Bathurst area.”

“Well that’s not going to help,” Ms Stevenson said. “The question was what is he going to do about his drug problem? The answer is nothing.”