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Five years for man who helped terrorise teen and family over drug debt

Summary

Aaron Colton, 24, of Mount Olive Grove, Kilbarrack, Dublin, was sentenced at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court after pleading guilty to demanding money with menace for an alleged drug debt at a teenager's home on November 23, 2017. Judge Martin Nolan jailed Colton for five years. The court heard that Colton threatened the 16-year-old victim, stating he would break him and kill him if he did not pay. Colton, who has 40 previous convictions, had been on remand since January this year after a warrant was issued for his failure to appear at a prior hearing. This sentence follows the May 2018 sentencing of co-accused Alan Long, 28, of Briarfield, Kilbarrack, who was also jailed for five years after pleading guilty to trespass, theft, assault, and demanding money with menaces at the victim's home in October 2017. Long had allegedly inflated a small drug debt to €8,000, stolen household items, and assaulted the teenager. The judge noted a pattern of abuse against the family, including threats to the victim's mother, and accepted that Colton's threats were convincing and believed to be carried out. Defense counsel John Moher BL argued Colton's behavior was a radical departure from his previous minor offenses, which the judge acknowledged.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Five years for man who helped terrorise teen and family over drug debt. Charges or matters: to one count of trespass and theft, one count of assault and one count of demanding money with menaces at his victim's Kilbarrack home on October 18 and 19 last year; demanding money with menace for an alleged drug debt at the teenager's home on November 23, 2017. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• May 2018 Incident
• October 18 Incident
• November 23, 2017 Incident
• November 23 Adjournment
• December 6, 2017 Incident
• 2019-07-03 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Drugs Stage Sentence Theft Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report