Sentencing decision deferred for Riad Bouchaker after Parnell Square convictions

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

Riad Bouchaker was found guilty of the attempted murder of three children and five other offences following the attack at Parnell Square in Dublin. At a sentencing hearing on 12 October 2026, Judge Tony Hunt said he would give his decision at a later date.

A Central Criminal Court jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on all eight charges on 1 July 2026. Bouchaker had denied all eight charges.

The convictions related to the attempted murder of two girls and a boy; intentionally inflicting serious harm on childcare worker Leanne Flynn; assault causing harm to two other children and a passerby, Alan Lorena Guille; and producing a knife.

The attack took place on 23 November 2023. One of the children suffered severe brain and other injuries requiring 24-hour care. Flynn underwent life-saving surgery after she was stabbed while trying to protect the children.

Before the trial, psychiatrists disagreed about Bouchaker’s fitness to plead. Hunt ruled him fit to stand trial with the assistance of an interpreter and an intermediary. At the sentencing hearing, Bouchaker’s barrister said his cognitive and intellectual limitations should be considered, including in relation to why he contested the case.