Dublin restaurant owner asks court to return Audi Q8 seized from Wicklow home
The Wicklow PeopleA Dublin restaurant owner has asked a Wicklow court to order the return of an Audi Q8 seized by gardaí from the garden of his Wicklow home.
Shane Lyons, who also goes by Sean O Listháin (58), with an address in Wicklow, appeared at Bray District Court for a police property application, seeking to have an Audi Q8 returned to him after gardaí seized it from the garden of his home address.
Mr Lyons, who is the owner of a restaurant called La Cosa Nostra, located on Thomas Street, Co Dublin, informed Judge Andy Gubbins that he has initiated High Court proceedings in relation to the seized vehicle. It was noted that the State has 10 days to make an appearance.
Gardaí from Bray Garda Station seized the vehicle under Section 109A of the Road Traffic Act 1961 after his son allegedly “tipped” a neighbour’s car.
Shane Lyons, who also goes by Sean O Listháin (58) outside his restaurant. © Shayne Phelan
Speaking after the hearing, Mr Lyons told independent.ie: “No complaint was made. I sorted it,” adding that when gardaí came to his house they asked for his insurance details and he “told them they could get them from the national police database”.
Mr Lyons claimed he had been taking painkillers after suffering from cellulitis at the time the gardaí attended and was confided to his bed. He said he would have had to “crawl” down the stairs to retrieve the documents, describing the whole situation as “a farce”.
He described the dispute as “a simple factual matter” and said he was “just trying to get my car back”.
He also alleged that he had an argument over the phone with a member of An Garda Síochána about the insurance.
According to Mr Lyons, who said he buys and sells vehicles and has a fleet of cars, gardaí had refused to return the Audi for almost three months and had “overstepped” in seizing it.
He insisted he operates within the law, adding: “I stick to the law.”
He has been a resident of Wicklow since 2023 after purchasing a new-build house in a upmarket Wicklow housing estate for more than €600,000.
Sergeant Mick Dee told Bray District Court last week that it would be the prosecution’s position to seek an adjournment to see if the High Court makes a determination.
Judge Gubbins adjourned the matter until September 17. The matter also comes before the High Court on Tuesday, July 21, where proceedings are due to continue.
In 2000, Mr Lyons received a four-year prison sentence for the possession of over €100,000 worth of cannabis.
Eleven years later, he received a four-year sentence for the assault of his ex-girlfriend by strangling her and pushing her friend to the floor after a night out in Dublin city centre.
Defence barrister Pieter Le Vert explained back in 2011, at a sitting of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, that his client was in a “dark place” at the time of the assault, as he had just broken up with his wife.