Man found with knife and knuckle duster at Wicklow checkpoint avoids jail
The Wicklow PeopleA Dublin man who was found with a knife and a knuckle duster during a roadside checkpoint has avoided a custodial sentence
Marwan Ayesh (31), of Beechpark, Cabinteely, Dublin 18, appeared at Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court for sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of a knife and a knuckle duster.
Garda James O’Sullivan of Roundwood Garda Station testified that in May 2025, while conducting a checkpoint, he stopped a Toyota estate car. After stopping the vehicle, Gda O’Sullivan realised the NCT was expired and asked the accused to step out of the car.
The court heard that Ayesh became nervous, which led Gda O’Sullivan to search the car under the Misuse of Drugs Act. During the search, a knife and a knuckle duster wrapped in black insulation tape were discovered.
Ayesh told gardaí that he had been camping the previous night and that the items were part of his equipment.
Counsel for the prosecution, James Kelly, said the defendant had previously appeared before Bray District Court, where Judge David Kennedy declined jurisdiction and disqualified him from driving for six months due to the expired NCT.
The court heard the accused was born in Saudi Arabia to Palestinian parents and was extremely cooperative and polite during questioning.
Barrister for the accused, Richard Brady, instructed by solicitor Ibrahim Chaudhary, told the court that Mr Ayesh has been living in Ireland for 29 years and had put himself through third-level education, but dropped out following the death of a relative.
He added that his client is currently working for a large multinational company as a customer agent and is being supported to return to college.
Mr Ayesh told probation services that he had found the knuckle duster on the ground in a forest two weeks earlier. An “extremely positive” probation report was handed into the court.
Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin accepted Mr Ayesh’s remorse as genuine before sentencing him to 60 hours of community service in lieu of a prison sentence.
She warned him: “Don’t have any curiosity about knuckle dusters again.”