Courts / Dublin / Report

Four year sentence for petrol bomb arson attack

Date
2014-11-27

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court case, John Paget, 37, was sentenced to four years' imprisonment for criminal damage by arson after he set a petrol bomb on a Renault Megane parked near a house. The homeowner, who was alone with his three‑year‑old son and a ten‑day‑old baby, was not involved in the incident. Paget pleaded guilty on 12 December 2013. The judge accepted that he was the "patsy" but noted he had gone to the garage, filled a milk bottle with petrol, rode his bike to the premises and threw the bomb. The court suspended the final 12 months of the sentence, citing the presence of other offenders. The damage was limited to the vehicle and the front edges of the neighbouring house, and no victim impact report was prepared because the harm was property‑based. The case was prosecuted by Dean Kelly BL and defended by Luigi Rea BL.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Four year sentence for petrol bomb arson attack. Charges or matters: criminal damage by arson on December 12, 2013. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

December 12, 2013 Incident
2014-11-27 Publication

Why: He later said he had been paid €50 to carry out the attack by a traveller who claimed that he had a grudge against the homeowner because he was "a rat". CNI source report