Garth McGimpsey, one of Ireland's most successful amateur golfers, has suggested that he may have been the victim of a set-up after he was cleared of having any links to a drugs seizure at his home in Bangor, Co Down.
Mr McGimpsey (49), who protested his innocence from the minute he was arrested last May, expressed his relief yesterday after Customs and Excise told him he would not be facing any charges relating to a £60,000 seizure of cocaine at his home.
The amateur golfer had been on bail, instructed to report to Newtownards PSNI station every 28 days. Customs and Excise told Mr McGimpsey, who is the non-playing captain of the British and Irish Walker Cup amateur golf team, that he was now free from that bail.
Mr McGimpsey, who was capped 226 times for Ireland, is to travel to Chicago next week with the team for some practice and acclimatisation sessions in preparation for next year's Walker Cup. "I will be walking the golf course with a lighter step now," he told The Irish Times yesterday.
"It's been pretty hard, I have to say, with this hanging over me. I've been living my life in 28-day cycles, having to report to the police every 28 days as part of my bail conditions. I am glad that's all behind me now," he added.
Mr McGimpsey said he was further relieved that Customs and Excise was to continue with its investigation into how a parcel containing the cocaine with his name and address was sent to his home.
"That is good news as far as I am concerned," he said. "I have got a certain degree of closure of this case now but I will get even more closure if I can find out how and why the package was sent to my home."
Mr McGimpsey said he started opening the parcel, which had an Amsterdam postmark, after it arrived. He became suspicious when he saw a number of sealed bags under a teddy bear, some sweets, three tennis balls and a football. He did not get a chance to contact the PSNI because within minutes of the package being delivered Customs and Excise officers arrived at his door to arrest him.
"I just don't know how and why this happened - I wish I did - but it seems I was either the victim of a set-up or maybe my address was being used as a delivery point with a view to the parcel being intercepted before it came to me," he said.
Nobody has been charged in connection with the drugs seizure. "I hope Customs and Excise can shed more light on this, because that is their job."
Mr McGimpsey was forced to postpone a visit to Buckingham Palace to accept an MBE because of the case but hoped that he would be able to receive the award in the near future.
Mr McGimpsey is separated from his wife and due to divorce this year. He said that the period since May was a difficult and depressing time for himself and his close family who stood with him at all occasions.
A father of two boys and a girl, he said: "It was nice to be able to tell them that I am cleared and we can all move on. It was also great to be able to tell my mother who suffered a terrible time over this."
Mr McGimpsey added that he wanted to thank the numerous people from all over Ireland and Britain and around the world for the "unbelievable" support they gave him. "They helped to sustain me through this crisis," he said.
