Gerard Dunne jailed for petrol bomb endangerment

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Gerard Dunne was sentenced to four and a half years in prison, with the final six months suspended for 12 months on strict conditions. Judge Melanie Greally sentenced him at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Dunne pleaded guilty to endangerment and possession of a petrol bomb. The offences took place on the Link Road in Darndale, Dublin, on 29 April 2019. The proceedings were reported on 12 February 2020.

The report said Garda Karl Kelly had seen Dunne cycling suspiciously before Dunne threw an ignited petrol bomb across the road in his direction. It struck a curb and smashed, emitting a flame. Detective Sergeant Eoin Colbert said Garda Kelly saw it coming and ran out of the way.

Dunne denied intending to throw the petrol bomb at the garda, but later accepted it could have been him after being told gardaí had identified him as a suspect from CCTV. Defence counsel Karl Monahan said Dunne claimed he had been in a drug-fuelled haze and was aiming at the vehicle beside Garda Kelly, rather than the garda. He said Dunne’s recollection was largely prompted by the footage.

Judge Greally said the CCTV appeared to show Dunne lying in wait before throwing the petrol bomb. She described it as a very serious incident of endangerment and acknowledged his claim that he did not specifically recall it.