Wicklow man (51) jailed for unprovoked attack with wheel brace and cocaine dealing
The Wicklow PeopleA man from Bray has been sentenced to six and a half years in prison for drug offences, and for assaulting another man with a wheel brace during an unprovoked attack.
Fran Treacy (51), with an address in Bray, Co. Wicklow, appeared for sentencing before Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday.
Mr Treacy was charged with one count of possession of drugs for the purpose of sale or supply, and one count of assault causing harm under Section 3 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997, as amended by the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2023. Both charges relate to separate incidents.
Garda Alex O’Hanlon from Bray Garda Station testified that on November 29, 2023, gardaí raided Mr Treacy’s home in Bray. On arrival, gardaí announced that they had a search warrant, but nobody answered the call. They proceeded to force entry through the front door, and after the door was breached, it was discovered that a wardrobe had been placed in front of it.
During the search, gardaí uncovered 62 grams of ketamine valued at €3,770, 123 grams of cocaine valued at €8,600, and €25 worth of cannabis. Mr Treacy was arrested and charged on November 29, 2023. He made no reply when charged.
The court was informed that Mr Treacy has nine previous convictions dating back to 1995.
Gda O’Hanlon told the court that Brian Hyland, a native of Tallaght, had been in Bray with friends watching a football match at a local pub. When he left to meet his partner, who was running late, he decided to take a walk along Bray Riverwalk.
James Kelly BL, counsel for the prosecution, told the court that it was around 8pm in the evening in May 2025 and “it would have still been quite bright out”.
Mr Treacy, who had been drinking cans on the Riverwalk, confronted Mr Hyland and struck him with a metal pole, later discovered to be a wheel brace.
Mr Hyland suffered injuries to his brain and teeth, and when gardaí arrived on the scene, his face was covered in blood. The wheel brace was thrown into the river and could not be recovered by gardaí.
The court heard that Mr Hyland declined to provide a victim impact statement. Mr Treacy committed the assault while on bail for the drugs charge.
Counsel for the defence, Justin McQuade BL, instructed by Brendan Maloney Solicitors, told the court that his client had an addiction to a range of substances, including crack cocaine and heroin.
The court heard that Mr Treacy receives methadone daily and continues treatment while in custody. Mr McQuade said his client’s home had been used by members of a drug-dealing network in Bray to sell drugs, in exchange for small quantities for his own use.
Gda O’Hanlon, however, told the court that Mr Treacy was also complicit in the selling of drugs and is known to gardaí in the Bray area.
Mr McQuade told the court: “My client was 51 last Sunday but he looks very much older than 51.” Judge Patrick Quinn agreed.
The defence noted that Mr Treacy is a single man with no children and had spent his working years as a labourer on building sites. The court also heard that he suffered heart failure in 2025 and was revived by his sister, who helped save his life.
Mr McQuade said: “My client isn’t a mover or a shaker,” adding, “he is someone who fits the mould of a vulnerable man who was preyed upon.”
Judge Quinn sentenced Mr Treacy to six and a half years in total, three years for the drug offence and three and a half years for the assault, to run concurrently.
He suspended the final year and a half due to Mr Treacy’s early guilty plea and backdated the sentence to October 23, 2025.