Courts / Dublin / Report

Bloodstained note sees syringe-wielding robber jailed

Date
2020-03-05

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

Samantha Irwin, 36, was convicted of robbing a shop in Dublin on 20 September 2018, stealing €55 from a shop assistant while armed with a syringe. A bloodstained note found in her pocket, containing numbers for out‑of‑hours homeless accommodation, was identified by CCTV and matched to her DNA. She pleaded guilty to robbery and to possession of two shotgun cartridges found in her accommodation in April 2019. The court, hearing that she had no history of violence and was in a severe addiction episode, imposed a headline sentence of seven and a half years but reduced it to five and a half years with the final 18 months suspended. Conditions include residential drug treatment. She also received a nine‑month term for the cartridge offence, to run concurrently with the robbery sentence. The judge noted her remorse, drug‑free status, and steps taken in rehabilitation.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Bloodstained note sees syringe-wielding robber jailed. Charges or matters: robbery at Real Brazil, Capel Street, Dublin on September 20, 2018; possession of two shotgun cartridges at her bedroom at Haven House hostel on April 12, 2019. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

September 20, 2018 Incident
April 12, 2019 Incident
April 2019 Incident
Christmas Other
2020-03-05 Publication

Case subjects

Samantha Irwin

Defendant

Charges: robbery at Real Brazil, Capel Street, Dublin on September 20, 2018; possession of two shotgun cartridges at her bedroom at Haven House hostel on April 12, 2019 (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: Judge Greally set a headline sentence of seven and a half years but imposed five and a half years with the final 18 months suspended on conditions including that Irwin undergo a period of residential drug treatment. Judge Greally gave her a nine month prison term for this offence, to run alongside the sentence imposed for the robbery.