Jonathan Harding, 44, was denied bail by the High Court after being charged with possession of five revolvers, ammunition and a silencer seized from a warehouse in west Dublin. He appeared before Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy, who rejected the bail application on the grounds that it was necessary to prevent a serious offence. The prosecution, represented by Kathleen Leader BL, objected to bail, while the defence, Michael Hourican BL, noted Harding's occupation and family ties. Harding was arrested on 24 January and faces charges for the firearms and silencer found at the Greenogue Business Park.
Masterlift Ireland Ltd, a forklift company employing 35 people, secured a temporary High Court injunction from Mr Justice Paul Gilligan to regain access to its 60,000‑sq‑ft unit at Greenogue Business Park, Rathcoole, after being locked out by Royal Goldstein III Ltd (RGL). Masterlift had been leasing the premises since 2008 and claimed the lock‑out caused substantial disruption. RGL, newly owning the property following a receivership, had changed the locks without prior notice, allegedly threatening to clamp Masterlift vehicles and charge €1,000 for release. Masterlift's managing director, Dermot Carroll, received a call from a purported RGL employee stating Masterlift had no lease and that its vehicles were interfering with RGL's access. The injunction, granted ex‑parte, prohibits RGL from denying access, changing locks, selling property in the premises, or interfering with parked cars, and is returnable on Tuesday. The case remains at the interim injunction stage.
In a High Court case, the O'Reilly family, who bought a three‑bedroom duplex in Saggart in 2005, claim that the property was defective, with condensation, mould and poor ventilation causing respiratory infections in their seven‑ and nine‑year‑old sons. After medical tests in 2010 revealed a lung mass in one son, the family left the house and have lived in rented accommodation since. They sued the builders and developers, alleging negligence and breach of duty for failing to ensure the property was defect‑free. The defendants, based in Co. Wexford, deny the claims and say they offered repairs, which the O'Reillys refused. The court heard evidence of leaks, mould, water ingress and a collapsed bath, and that the mould was deemed toxic by experts. The case is pending before Mr Justice Donald Binchy.
Niall Barron, a 44‑year‑old former Vodafone Ireland executive, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for a fraud scheme that deprived the company of about €1.95 million. Between 2003 and 2007, while serving as head of corporate financial services and fraud prevention, Barron used his authority to approve purchase orders and invoices for a company he owned, Tel‑Q Ltd, registered in Vanuatu. He ordered services that were never performed and paid invoices for work that did not occur. The court described the thefts as a sophisticated, pre‑meditated breach of trust. Barron pleaded guilty to sample charges under the Theft and Fraud Act. Co‑accused Elaine and David McGovern received suspended sentences and a nine‑month term, respectively, for lesser roles in the same fraud scheme. The case remains an ongoing civil matter for Vodafone.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing on 12 October 2016, Judge Melanie Greally sentenced Karl Brennan, 36, to six years' imprisonment for transporting €400,000 worth of heroin in his car while his one‑year‑old daughter was present. Brennan pleaded guilty to possession of the drugs at Tower Road, Clondalkin, on 10 December 2015. The judge imposed a six‑year term, suspending the final two years on strict conditions. Brennan, who has a heart condition and had previously worked for Coca Cola, was described by his family as a caring father. He admitted he had acted as a drug courier to earn money for Christmas. Garda surveillance had tracked his movements, revealing the heroin concealed in the door panel of his Nissan Micra. No prior convictions were recorded, and the person who had deposited the drugs was not apprehended. The court heard that Brennan cooperated fully with Gardaí and that he had no intention to re‑offend.
Joseph O'Neill, 41, of Ballyfermot, was sentenced to seven years in prison for possessing €1.4 million worth of heroin concealed in two fire extinguishers. He pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply on 19 August last year. O'Neill had been in Cloverhill Prison for nine months when he became chairman of the jail's Red Cross organisation and worked on a programme to reduce prison violence. He had given media interviews and spoke at an international conference in Dublin Castle, where he was one of four Irish prisoners invited and was not restrained. The judge noted his transformation and imposed a seven‑year sentence, suspending the final three years on strict conditions, backdating it to the date he entered custody. O'Neill apologized, said he was a chronic cocaine addict, and expressed remorse for the potential harm caused by the drugs. The operation was described as sophisticated, with the heroin hidden in hollowed fire extinguishers.
Joseph O'Neill, 41, pleaded guilty to possessing €1.4 million worth of heroin with intent to supply. He was caught with 10 kg of heroin concealed in two fire extinguishers. While in Cloverhill Prison, O'Neill became chairman of the jail's Red Cross organisation and worked on a programme to reduce prison violence. He gave a speech at an international conference in Dublin Castle and was left standing on Dame Street for an hour before guards escorted him back to prison. O'Neill apologised to gardaí, admitted he was a chronic cocaine addict and had been motivated by debt after losing his truck‑driver job. He asked the court to consider suspending part of any sentence imposed. He will be sentenced on 15 July.
A Dublin man has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Adil Essalhi following a five-day trial at the Central Criminal Court. Michael Kinsella, aged 22, with addresses in Tallaght and Ardkeen, Cavan, had initially pleaded not guilty to murder. The State's case alleged that Mr Essalhi, aged 29, was killed at Tyrellstown, Dublin on 6 January 2011 by two people acting together. The prosecution accepted a plea to the lesser charge of unlawful killing on condition that Kinsella admitted assaulting the deceased with a weapon. Medical evidence heard during trial indicated Mr Essalhi sustained in excess of fifty stabbing and chopping wounds, predominantly to the head and neck. His body was subsequently burnt. Kinsella's uncle, Wayne Kinsella, was previously convicted of Mr Essalhi's murder in 2012. Justice Deirdre Murphy adjourned sentencing to a later date.
At the Central Criminal Court, a jury heard evidence on Tuesday in the trial of Michael Kinsella (22), of Swiftbrook Close, Tallaght and Ardkeen, Cavan, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering Adil Essalhi (29) on January 6, 2011. The prosecution alleges the killing was committed by two people. Gardaí located Mr Essalhi's body partially submerged in a ditch near Tyrellstown, Dublin 15, on January 13, 2011 during an investigation into a missing person. A knife was recovered from the ditch the following day. Evidence was heard from gardaí who conducted the search and from a witness who was present when the deceased left a party with both Michael Kinsella and his uncle Wayne Kinsella, who was convicted of the murder in 2012. The trial continues.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Christopher Dunne, aged 27, was sentenced to five and a half years' imprisonment for making a threat to kill Derek Walker in Clondalkin on 15 January 2013. Judge Mary Ellen Ring suspended the last 18 months of the sentence. Dunne, who has 126 prior convictions, also pleaded guilty to criminal damage to Walker's vehicle, possession of a GPS device for use in a crime, and theft of an Audi A4. His brother Aaron Dunne, aged 21, was previously sentenced to two and a half years with 18 months suspended for criminal damage and possession of a baseball bat during the same incident. The trial noted that Walker and a woman were hostile witnesses, and that witnesses were terrified and reluctant to testify. The court recorded that Walker had claimed the Dunne brothers owed him money for a car he had sold.
Two convicted murderers, Anthony Craig (66) and Michael Anthony Balmer (62), are appealing a High Court order requiring their extradition to serve life sentences in the UK. Both men had previously served the punitive parts of their sentences and were subject to continued detention due to the risk they posed to the public. Craig, with an address in Rathcoole, South Dublin, was convicted and jailed for life for the murder of a man in a park in Blackburn on November 3, 1973. He escaped from prison after serving 28 years and was arrested in Ireland in 2013. Balmer, with a last address in Cornwall, England, was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1984 for the murder of a woman in Devon on July 28, 1983. He came to Ireland in 2012 following his conditional release on license, which was later revoked. The appeal is based on the argument that their extradition would result in immediate preventative detention, which is contrary to Irish law and the Irish Constitution. The Court of Appeal has reserved judgment and will deliver its decision on May 21. The matter remains under appeal and has not been finalised.
Anthony Craig, 66, and Michael Anthony Balmer, 62, both convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in the UK, have appealed High Court orders that would have had them extradited to the UK to serve the remainder of their sentences. Craig was convicted in 1973 for a murder in Blackburn, served 28 years, escaped to Ireland, and was arrested in 2013 on an extradition warrant. Balmer was convicted in 1984 for a murder in Devon, released on license in 2011, had his license revoked in 2012, and was arrested in Cork. The appeals argue that extradition would subject them to preventative detention under English law, which they claim violates Irish constitutional principles and Article 40.4.2. The cases remain before the Court of Appeal, with counsel for both men presenting their arguments and the Director of Public Prosecutions yet to reply.
Alan Boggans, 39, of Newcastle, was convicted of possessing over €1.9 million worth of cannabis resin for sale or supply at Celtic Truck Wash and Park, Rathcoole, on 1 September 2009. A jury at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court found him guilty and Judge Patrick McCartan sentenced him to 13 years' imprisonment on 24 June 2013. Boggans appealed the conviction, but the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. Judge Garrett Sheehan confirmed that Boggans had received a fair trial. The case centred on a Garda surveillance operation that led to a search warrant issued under section 26 of the Misuse of Drugs Act. Evidence included drugs found in a white Mercedes van, fingerprints matching Boggans, and mobile phones linked to him. Boggans' counsel argued the warrant was issued too hastily and that the Superintendent was not independent, but the court rejected these arguments and upheld the conviction. The appeal was dismissed on all grounds. Alan Boggans pleaded not guilty.
Alan Boggans, aged 39, appealed a 13‑year imprisonment sentence for possessing €1.9 million worth of cannabis resin. He argued that the warrant used to enter the premises at Celtic Truck Wash was issued after the search had begun, rendering the operation unlawful, and that the warrant was issued by a Garda who had been involved in the investigation, violating the independence requirement set out in the Supreme Court's Damache ruling. Boggans' counsel also contended that the trial judge failed to allow cross‑examination of a Garda who claimed to have seen Boggans run across a Mercedes van containing the drugs, and that the CCTV evidence was not fully disclosed. The Director of Public Prosecutions countered that the warrant was issued in an urgent situation and that all relevant evidence had been properly disclosed. The Court of Appeal reserved judgment for a February hearing. Alan Boggans pleaded not guilty and was found guilty.
Aaron Dunne, aged 21, of Grangeview Road, Clondalkin, Dublin, has been sentenced to three and a half years imprisonment at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court following convictions for document fraud and criminal damage. Dunne pleaded guilty to ten counts of possessing and using a forged learner permit licence between June and November 2012, having arranged for another person to sit his theory test and then altering the resulting licence with his own photograph. When gardaí seized the false document, Dunne reported it lost and obtained a replacement through a local garda station without the seizure being checked on the database. He was sentenced to two and a half years for the fraud offences. Dunne also pleaded guilty to criminal damage and producing a baseball bat during an incident at a restaurant near Rathcoole in January 2013, receiving an additional consecutive sentence of two and a half years with eighteen months suspended. Judge Mary Ellen Ring noted the extended period of false document use posed a danger to the public.
In 2011, Stephen Grant, aged 41, was sentenced to eight years in prison by Judge Martin Nolan after pleading guilty to possessing €1,976,244 worth of cannabis resin and drugs for sale or supply at a truck wash in Greenogue, Rathcoole. Evidence from a surveillance operation showed a white van entering Greenogue Industrial estate, which was seized by Gardai. At the sentence hearing, Grant's counsel argued that mitigating factors such as his early guilty plea, community contributions, low likelihood of reoffending, and significant rehabilitation efforts had not been adequately considered, while aggravating factors had been overemphasised. Judge Frank Clarke granted the appeal, increasing the imposed sentence to ten years but suspending the final four years. This adjustment reflects the court's recognition of Grant's rehabilitation progress, allowing potential early release if he continues to progress, while maintaining serious consequences for any further offences.
A civil engineer from Kingscourt, County Cavan, has been sentenced to three years in prison by the Court of Criminal Appeal for dangerous driving causing death. Ronan Cunningham, aged 30, had pleaded guilty to causing the death of Emanuel Mendez on the N7 Naas dual carriageway in October 2010 whilst driving whilst under the influence of alcohol. The original five-year suspended sentence imposed at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in 2012 was deemed unduly lenient and was overturned on appeal. Mr Justice Adrian Hardiman, presiding, described Cunningham's driving—travelling seven kilometres in the wrong direction after consuming approximately eight pints—as "hideous". The court also imposed a 15-year driving ban. Cunningham was afforded one week to arrange his personal affairs before commencing his sentence.
The Court of Criminal Appeal ruled on Tuesday that a five-year wholly suspended sentence imposed for dangerous driving causing death was unduly lenient. Ronan Cunningham, aged 31, of Enniskeen, Kingscourt, had pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in December 2011 to causing the death of Emmanuel Mendes, aged 24, on the N7 Naas dual carriageway on 10 October 2010. Cunningham also pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol. He had driven seven kilometres in the wrong direction down the dual carriageway after consuming seven or eight pints. His car collided with a vehicle carrying Mr Mendes and his fiancée; Mr Mendes was fatally injured. Presiding Judge Adrian Hardiman stated that the "extraordinary nature" of the driving had not been adequately considered at sentencing. The court directed preparation of a probation report and adjourned the case to 6 November for submissions on an appropriate sentence.