Court archive
Court reports mentioning Ballymote, Sligo
2023-07-04 · Sligo
A man with 86 previous convictions, including for domestic violence, has had his custodial sentence doubled following a Court of Appeal ruling. Jason Doyle (28) of Tower Hill, Ballymote, County Sligo, pleaded guilty to one count of assault causing harm against his then partner at their home on 10 January 2021. Sligo Circuit Criminal Court had imposed a two-year sentence with 15 months suspended. The State appealed on grounds of undue leniency. The victim sustained injuries including bleeding to the head, bruising to the jaw-line, and blows to the back of her head and body during the overnight incident. Justice Isobel Kennedy, delivering the Court of Appeal's judgment, found the lower court had erred in principle by applying an excessive mitigation discount. The court substituted a headline sentence of three years with nine months credited for the guilty plea and nine months suspended, resulting in an 18-month custodial term.
2022-02-11 · Sligo
A 44-year-old Lithuanian man has failed in his appeal against a four-year custodial sentence imposed for managing a cannabis cultivation operation in Ballymote, County Sligo. Danius Gastilavicius pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis plants at the premises on 26 March 2020 and was sentenced to five years' imprisonment with the final year suspended by Judge Francis Comerford at Sligo Circuit Criminal Court in December 2020. Gastilavicius argued the sentence was disproportionate compared to that of his teenage co-accused, who received three years with the last 20 months suspended. His counsel submitted both men were apprehended at the scene and noted fewer than 20 plants were recovered. The Director of Public Prosecutions contended the appellant held a managerial position and had significant previous convictions, distinguishing his culpability from his younger co-accused. The Court of Appeal dismissed the application, finding Judge Comerford had properly assessed each offender's respective roles.
2021-05-19 · Sligo
A man from Sligo has been found guilty of murdering his wife at the Central Criminal Court. Rafal Karaczyn, aged thirty-five, of Crozon Park in Sligo, pleaded guilty to manslaughter but not guilty to murder for the unlawful killing of his wife Natalia on 29 April 2018. A jury of eleven members returned a guilty verdict for murder following a two-day deliberation, with ten jurors in agreement. The trial heard that Natalia had sought to leave her husband and have him removed from their home. When she returned to the family residence in the early hours of a Sunday morning, Karaczyn demanded to know where she had been. He subsequently strangled her. Karaczyn claimed provocation, asserting that his wife's slap and refusal to disclose her whereabouts caused him to lose self-control. The jury rejected this defence. Ms Justice Eileen Creedon imposed the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment. Following sentencing, Superintendent Mandy Gaynor commended the garda investigation and thanked the community in Sligo for their cooperation.
2021-05-13 · Sligo
Rafal Karaczyn, 35, of Crozon Park, Sligo, is on trial at the Central Criminal Court for the death of his wife, Ms Karaczyn, at their family home between April 29th and May 1st, 2018. He has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The trial heard that Mr Karaczyn demonstrated to gardai how he strangled his wife with both hands after she slapped him. He admitted to Detective Garda Pauline O'Neill that he unlawfully killed her and accepted he alone caused her death. Although he initially provided false accounts, including a claim of a gun threat, he later confessed to the truth after speaking with his sister-in-law. The defence called witness Piotr Korozan, who described the accused as mentally destroyed by marital difficulties. The prosecution noted the accused has no prior convictions or history of domestic violence. The matter was adjourned to continue on Monday before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon and a jury.
2021-05-12 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court, a jury has heard evidence of exchanges between Natalia and Rafal Karaczyn in the months before her death. Text messages and Facebook communications were presented showing Ms Karaczyn repeatedly rejecting her husband's attempts at reconciliation, telling him to leave her life and forbidding him from entering their Crozon Park home in Ballymote, Sligo. Two days before her death, she stated he could "never set foot" in the house again. Detective Sergeant Oliver McHale testified about these communications. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 35, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. He admits unlawfully killing his wife by strangling her at their family home between 29 April and 1 May 2018. During garda interview at Ballymote station, he denied causing her death and described an alleged threat from unknown individuals. The trial before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon continues.
2021-05-07 · Sligo
A murder trial at the Central Criminal Court heard that the accused man described lying beside his wife's body for ten to fifteen minutes after strangling her with his bare hands. Magdalena McMorrow, the victim's sister, told the court that Rafal Karaczyn made this admission at Ballymote Garda Station four days after Natalia Karaczyn's death in May 2018. Ms McMorrow said the accused initially gave her false accounts, claiming not to know what had happened to his wife and later alleging involvement by a Traveller family. The witness described searching for her sister on the morning she went missing and the accused's anxious behaviour during that search. Karaczyn, aged thirty-five, of Crozon Park, Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The trial heard evidence that Natalia had been with another man the night before her death. The case continues before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon and jury.
2020-03-10 · Sligo
A jury at the Central Criminal Court has viewed video evidence from Ballymote Garda Station in which a man described to detectives how he killed his wife. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, from Crozon Park in Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The footage, recorded on 2 May 2018, showed Mr Karaczyn explaining to gardaí that he strangled his 30-year-old wife Natalia at their home between 29 April and 1 May 2018. During the interview, he demonstrated the actions using a toilet roll held in both hands. The court heard that Mr Karaczyn was placed on suicide watch by District Court order the day after his admission. Earlier interviews were also shown to the jury, in which Mr Karaczyn had denied involvement and alleged that an unknown man had threatened him. The trial continues before Justice Eileen Creedon.
2020-03-09 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court, a jury has heard evidence from the eighth garda interview with a 34-year-old man charged with the murder of his wife. The accused, from Crozon Park in Ballymote, Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. During questioning at Ballymote Garda Station on May 2nd, 2018, he admitted to strangling his wife following her return from a night out on April 29th, 2018. He told detectives he woke when she arrived home and, after she pushed and slapped him during an argument, he strangled her. He described feeling "very big regret and grief" afterwards. The accused also told gardai he subsequently moved her body to a car boot but dropped it on the kitchen floor as it was too heavy. In earlier interviews, he had provided an account involving threats from an unknown man, but later admitted these claims were false. The trial at the Central Criminal Court is continuing.
2020-03-04 · Sligo
A man on trial for murder told gardaí at Ballymote Garda Station in County Sligo to search for CCTV footage of a six-foot man with red hair, whom he claimed had threatened him with a gun weeks before his wife disappeared. The Central Criminal Court heard evidence from four interviews conducted with the accused on April 30th and May 1st, 2018. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, of Crozon Park, Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of his wife Natalia, aged 30, at their family home between April 29th and May 1st, 2018. The jury previously heard that on May 2nd, 2018, the accused told his sister-in-law he had strangled his wife. CCTV footage showed him moving her silver Peugeot car early on April 29th and driving towards Holywell Road. A former employer described him as gentle and mild-mannered. The trial continues.
2020-03-03 · Sligo
A garda has testified at the Central Criminal Court that he discovered the body of a woman in a forested area off the Holywell Road near Ballymote, County Sligo, after being directed there by the accused man. Garda James Kenneally told the court that on the afternoon of May 1st, 2018, he located the partially concealed remains in dense woodland following specific directions from the defendant. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, of Crozon Park, Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of his wife, Natalia Karaczyn, aged 30, at their home between April 29th and May 1st, 2018. The garda also described earlier observations at the family home, including a washing machine containing dark shoes and the defendant's apparent anxiety when asked to contact his wife. Upon arrest on suspicion of murder, Karaczyn replied to caution by questioning what proof existed. The trial at the Central Criminal Court continues.
2020-03-02 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court in Dublin, a jury heard evidence regarding the movements of a woman on the morning she died. CCTV footage showed the 30-year-old returning to her home in Crozon Park, Sligo at 6.23am on 29 April 2018 following a night out. Nearly two hours later, her husband sent a text to her phone asking "where are you?", the court heard. Garda evidence placed the defendant in a silver Peugeot at the time of the message, with footage tracking his movements that morning, including driving up the side of the house and later towards Holywell Road before returning home. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, of Crozon Park, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. A witness told the court she observed the defendant's wife and another individual kissing at a bar shortly before 3am that night. The trial before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon continues.
2020-03-02 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court in Dublin, a trial heard evidence on Monday concerning the movements of a 30-year-old woman in the hours before her death. A man gave testimony that he accompanied the woman to his home in Sligo in the early morning of April 29th, 2018, and walked her partway home after approximately two hours. A garda told the court that CCTV footage showed the woman entering her family home at 6.23am that morning. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, of Crozon Park in Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of his wife between April 29th and May 1st, 2018. The trial, before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon and a jury, continues to hear evidence regarding the circumstances surrounding her death.
2020-02-28 · Sligo
Natalia Karaczyn's sister has given evidence at the Central Criminal Court regarding CCTV footage she viewed in the hours following her sibling's disappearance in April 2018. Magdalena McMorrow told the jury she saw her sister walking towards her home in Crozon Park, Sligo, on footage recorded from a property situated 170 metres away. Mrs McMorrow said she had received a text from Natalia's husband, Rafal Karaczyn, on the morning of Sunday, 29 April, stating that Natalia had not returned home following a night out. After locating the CCTV footage later that day, Mrs McMorrow conducted a search of the family home with Mr Karaczyn. Natalia's body was subsequently identified on the evening of Tuesday, 1 May. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, of Crozon Park, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The trial before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon continues.
2020-02-26 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court, the sister of a thirty-year-old woman whose body was discovered near Ballymote in May 2018 gave evidence regarding her brother-in-law's alleged confession. Rafal Karaczyn, aged thirty-four, of Crozon Park, Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to murder. The deceased's sister testified that she was present at Ballymote Garda Station when the accused told her he had killed his wife, describing how he allegedly strangled her during an argument in their home on the morning of 29 April 2018. The witness stated she responded by telling him "we forgive you," observing he was distressed throughout the conversation. Two friends of the deceased also gave evidence, recounting her activities on the evening before her disappearance and describing subsequent contact with the accused in which he expressed concern for his wife's whereabouts. The trial before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon continues.
2020-02-26 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court, the sister of Natalia Karaczyn gave evidence regarding her brother-in-law's account of events surrounding the 30-year-old's death. Rafal Karaczyn, aged 34, of Crozon Park in Sligo, has pleaded not guilty to her murder, which allegedly occurred at their family home between 29 April and 1 May 2018. The witness testified that the couple had been separated for a year prior, living in separate bedrooms, and that Mr Karaczyn was unwilling to move out. She described receiving a message from him on 30 April indicating his wife was missing, and subsequently alerting gardaí. The witness recounted that Mr Karaczyn later told her Natalia had become involved with dangerous individuals who threatened violence unless he allowed them access to their home. However, whilst alone with him at Ballymote Garda Station, he allegedly confessed to strangling his wife during an argument in a bedroom. The trial before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon continues.
2019-11-13 · Sligo
Keith Brady, aged 32, of Cartron Estate in Sligo, stands charged with murder following the death of a local musician at New Apartments on Holborn Street in August 2015. He has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. At the Central Criminal Court, the jury heard evidence of interviews conducted by gardaí. In an August 2015 interview at Sligo Garda Station, Mr Brady admitted stabbing the deceased and stated that matters had spiralled beyond his control. However, during a subsequent November interview at Ballymote Garda Station, he denied involvement and claimed memory loss due to intoxication. The court was informed that Mr Brady later approached prison authorities at Castlerea Prison in Roscommon in December 2015, requesting to speak with a sergeant who had previously interviewed him. During this meeting, Mr Brady provided a detailed account in which he acknowledged responsibility, expressed remorse to the deceased's family, and described the incident as unintentional. The trial continues.
2019-07-08 · Sligo
Richard McLaughlin, 32, is accused of murdering Jimmy 'James' Loughlin (20) at Connolly Street, Sligo, on February 24, 2018. McLaughlin pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. The Central Criminal Court heard evidence that McLaughlin admitted attacking the deceased with a crowbar, causing fatal traumatic head injuries. Gardaí testified that McLaughlin claimed he acted on delusions that Loughlin was raping someone known to him, despite no prior connection between the men. A consultant forensic psychiatrist, Dr. Anthony Kearns, testified that McLaughlin suffers from schizophrenia and was unable to appreciate the wrongfulness of his actions or refrain from committing them at the time. Dr. Kearns stated that McLaughlin fulfils the criteria for a special verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. The court noted McLaughlin's history of mental health issues, including previous admissions to St Columba's Hospital and poor medication compliance. The trial continues before Justice Carmel Stewart and a jury.
2018-10-24 · Sligo
The High Court has appointed a provisional liquidator to Taiga Shtof Ltd, a company based at Laburnum House, Fairgreen Road, Ballymote, County Sligo, which manufactures and distributes premium Russian vodka. Ms Justice Leonie Reynolds appointed insolvency practitioner Shane McCarthy of KPMG following confirmation that the company is insolvent and unable to meet its debts. The appointment was made after the court heard that the company encountered difficulties arising from a shareholder dispute. Production deadlines were allegedly not met, and the company faced funding shortfalls and unpaid expenses, causing significant business delays. The product, originally scheduled for launch in September 2016, was not released until December of that year. Two of the shareholders petitioned the court seeking a liquidator's appointment to preserve the company's brand and intellectual property for creditors. The petition also sought to facilitate execution of an exclusive United States distribution agreement required before November 7th. The judge adjourned the matter to a date in the following month.
2017-11-22 · Sligo
At the Central Criminal Court, a murder trial heard that the accused claimed he had been treated unfairly and denied involvement in a fatal stabbing. Keith Brady of Cartron Estate, Sligo has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter in connection with the death of Martin Kivlehan, aged 59, at New Apartments on Holborn Street, Sligo on 2–3 August 2015. The State rejected his manslaughter plea, and the case proceeded to trial. Detective Garda Paul Casey gave evidence that during an interview at Ballymote Garda Station in November 2015, Mr Brady stated he had not committed murder and expressed that he felt he had "been very hard done by". Mr Kivlehan died from two stab wounds to the neck. The trial continued before Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of eleven members after one juror was excused.
2016-11-07 · Sligo
A settlement agreement between former Fine Gael TD John Perry, his wife Marie and Danske Bank concerning a €2.47m judgment has broken down, the Commercial Court heard. The couple had consented to the judgment in 2013 following the bank's provision of a facility in 2011 to restructure existing loans. Danske claims the Perrys failed to meet obligations under a subsequent settlement arrangement and terminated the agreement last August. The bank is now pursuing recovery of the debt and obtained a High Court order requiring the Perrys to provide a statement of affairs detailing their assets. When the case returned before Mr Justice Brian Cregan on Monday, the deadline for compliance had passed without submission. The judge extended the timeframe by two weeks and directed that either Mr Perry or his legal representatives must attend the next court hearing. An accountant appearing on the couple's behalf stated Mr Perry was ill and cited difficulties obtaining information from the bank.
2014-02-07 · Sligo
A Sinn Féin local election candidate from County Sligo has secured a High Court order lifting his indefinite suspension from the party. Edward McCarrick, 33, with an address in Tubbercurry, was selected to contest the Ballymote electoral area in October 2013 but was suspended in early November. He claimed the suspension was imposed without disclosure of the complaint's nature, the complainant's identity, or opportunity to respond, breaching party procedures. The court heard that concerns had been raised regarding alleged threatening comments. Mr Justice Sean Ryan held that the candidate, entitled to the presumption of innocence, could not remain indefinitely suspended from the party while investigations by An Garda Síochána proceeded independently. The judge acknowledged the party had acted appropriately in referring sensitive information to gardaí but found ongoing suspension incompatible with due process. The injunction was granted and the suspension lifted accordingly.