A 32-year-old carpenter from Longford has avoided a custodial sentence following his admission to permitting the supply of heroin within his vehicle. Robert Nevin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to an offence relating to a controlled substance found in a van he was driving on August 15, 2012. Gardaí stopped the white Ford Transit after observing a red light breach and discovered approximately 120 grammes of heroin, valued at over €18,000, concealed within the vehicle. Nevin had travelled from Mullingar to Dublin with another man to collect the drugs. Judge Martin Nolan suspended a three-and-a-half-year sentence. The defence outlined that Nevin, who had previously operated a carpentry business serving Donegal and Sligo, developed a heroin addiction following personal difficulties and his mother's death in 2007. His co-accused received a similar sentence with a portion suspended.
A man has pleaded guilty to facilitating the escape of a prisoner from lawful custody in Ballyfermot on March 6, 2012. Lee King, aged 27, was part of a group that ambushed a garda car transporting a man from Longford to Cloverhill Prison. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that when the vehicle stopped at traffic lights, the group opened the rear door and extracted the prisoner, who had a broken leg. During the incident, King punched one of the gardaí in the head before fleeing the scene. He has remained in custody since March 2012. His defence counsel noted he has eighty previous convictions but expressed an intention to reform and participate in community employment upon release. Judge Martin Nolan adjourned sentencing to March 26 for a determination on the appropriate penalty.
A man has been sentenced to two years imprisonment at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for breaching sex offender notification requirements. Ian Bissett, aged 28, was convicted following trial of failing to inform gardaí of a change of address within the required seven-day period between July and August 2011. The sentence is to run concurrently with another custodial term he is currently serving. Bissett had been released from prison in June 2011 after completing a five-year sentence for aggravated sexual assault. Court heard he was homeless and relocated to Limerick without notifying gardaí as required under the Sex Offenders Act. He told gardaí he failed to comply because he was "homeless and fed up." The defendant has an extensive criminal history spanning 22 previous convictions. His release date on the concurrent sentence is scheduled for August 2016. Ian Bissett pleaded not 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.
The High Court heard an application by the Revenue Commissioners to lift a suspended six-month prison sentence imposed on a Granard car dealer in 2012 for contempt of court. Pauraig Kane, formerly involved with Kane Motors, owes €5.2 million in unpaid taxes dating from a 2004 assessment. The Revenue claimed Mr Kane breached conditions attached to the suspended sentence, including an obligation to clear vehicles from the yard and refrain from dealing in third-party cheques. The Revenue also alleged he failed to sell nine properties as undertaken to discharge his tax debt. Mr Kane's legal team opposed the application, denying deliberate non-compliance. The defendant maintained he had attempted to fulfil the court's orders, though he acknowledged no money had been paid to Revenue. He attributed difficulties with property sales to a solicitor's suspension and negative equity issues. The case was adjourned to continue.
The family of a 48-year-old man from Creenagh, County Longford, who died in a wall collapse at a DIY store has been awarded €750,000 in damages following a High Court settlement. Sean Mulleady sustained fatal injuries when an internal wall, measuring 6.5 metres high and 8.4 metres wide, collapsed on him and several others at Connacht Gold Co-Op Society's premises on Athlone Road, Longford on 29 January 2013. His widow, Teresa Mulleady, brought proceedings on her own behalf and that of their three children against the store operator, the building owners, the construction company, and the project manager. She alleged the defendants had failed to maintain a safe premises and had breached their duty of care. All defendants denied liability. Mr Justice Paul Gilligan approved the settlement, describing it as a good award in the circumstances. The judge commended Mrs Mulleady for her resilience throughout the case.
Balbriggan District Court heard various matters. James Reid pleaded guilty to hit and run, failing to stop, failing to provide information, failing to keep the vehicle at the scene, failing to report the incident, and having no tax. Judge Dermot Dempsey convicted Reid, fined him €400 for the hit and run offences, fined him €100 for no tax, and disqualified him from driving for six months. Piotr Boryslawski pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of cannabis. The judge ordered him to pay €300 to the Molly McNally Trust Fund by month's end, stating the charge would be struck out if paid. Several defendants were remanded on continuing bail. James Walsh, charged with cultivating cannabis, was adjourned to September 18 for service of the Book of Evidence. Gareth Lokko, alleged to have breached a barring order and caused criminal damage, was remanded to July 24. Kevin Harmon, alleged to have assaulted another man causing harm, was remanded to September 25 for DPP directions. Lorna Daly, alleged to have stolen petrol and used a false registration plate, was remanded to July 24 for a plea. Jandean Hyland, charged with assault causing harm, was remanded to July 31. Stephane Mbama, alleged to have dangerous driving and driving without insurance, was remanded to July 31. Michael Bollard, alleged to have breached a safety order, was granted bail with conditions and adjourned to July 17.
Wayne Dundon and Nathan Killeen, both from Prospect in Limerick, are charged with the murder of businessman Roy Collins at Coin Castle Amusements on Roxboro Road in Limerick on 9 April 2009. The two men are due to stand trial at the Special Criminal Court on 29 April before Justice Iseult O'Malley. At a hearing before Justice Paul Butler on Thursday, the defence sought disclosure of communications between garda stations and prisons, including recorded conversations between prosecution witnesses held in custody and gardaí. The State's counsel indicated that prison recordings are archived in Longford but that establishing access procedures would require time. The court adjourned the matter to the following Wednesday to allow the trial court to address the outstanding disclosure issues before the trial commences.
A 53-year-old mass-card salesman from Longford has begun an appeal against his conviction for possession of child pornography at the Court of Criminal Appeal. Thomas McNally was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment in October 2011 following a Longford Circuit Criminal Court jury verdict on charges relating to possessing 676 images downloaded in February 2006. The appeal centres on whether the defence was entitled to challenge expert evidence presented by the prosecution regarding handwriting found on the images. The defence sought to call a competing expert witness but the trial judge refused permission. McNally was granted bail on compassionate grounds pending the appeal. The court indicated proceedings would continue at a later hearing. Thomas McNally pleaded not guilty.
Donal Connaughton, a pig farmer from Newtowncashel, County Longford, has been granted bail pending an appeal against his conviction. The Court of Criminal Appeal made the decision on 12 December 2013. Connaughton was sentenced to twelve months imprisonment last month by Judge Tony Hunt at Longford Circuit Criminal Court. He was found guilty in December 2012 of two counts of false imprisonment, two counts of threatening to cause serious harm, one count of assault, and two counts of criminal damage relating to an incident at a pig farm in Longford on 29 April 2010. He was acquitted of a further assault charge. Presiding Justice Adrian Hardiman said the court was influenced by the likelihood that Connaughton's sentence would expire before his appeal hearing. The appeal will proceed on grounds that jurors may have been influenced during trial. Gardaí investigated allegations made by Connaughton but the Director of Public Prosecutions directed no prosecution. Bail was granted on the same terms as those imposed before trial.
A 17-year-old boy has admitted assisting in the escape of a prisoner from garda custody during an incident on Dublin's Ballyfermot Road in March 2012. The youth, who was 15 at the time, pleaded guilty at Dublin Children's Court to charges under Section Six of the Criminal Law Act 1976. According to prosecution evidence, a prisoner remanded by Longford District Court was being transported to Cloverhill Prison when the garda vehicle stopped at traffic lights. Five people approached the car, and the teenager opened the door, enabling the detainee to flee. A garda attempting to prevent the escape was assaulted and briefly lost consciousness. The court noted the defendant did not participate in the attack. His defence counsel highlighted his age at the time, absence of prior convictions, and current engagement with an educational programme. He was remanded on bail pending sentencing in January, when a probation report will be submitted. A second youth charged in connection with the same incident is also awaiting sentencing.