A 60‑year‑old Galway man was found guilty by a jury of two counts of indecent assault and two counts of rape of his cousin, who was aged between seven and nine at the time. The cousin, who was also the man's godfather, was aged between 22 and 24. The man, now married with adult children, denies the verdicts and maintains his innocence. The victim, who thanked the jury for believing her, said she had lived in constant fear of the man and that the revelations of abuse had torn apart her extended family. She noted that her elderly mother remains unaware of the abuse. The case was heard in the Central Criminal Court, with sentencing scheduled for 29 June. The man has been in custody since his conviction in February. The court adjourned the matter to the end of the month for sentencing.
James O'Reilly, aged 75, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for repeatedly raping and sexually abusing his younger sister and seven daughters over a 23‑year period from 1977 to 2000. He pleaded not guilty to 81 counts of rape and sexual abuse, but a jury convicted him of 58 counts of rape and nine counts of sexual assault. The court heard that he subjected the victims to physical beatings, starvation, and degradation, and that one daughter became pregnant from a rape in 1988 and was further abused during her pregnancy. DNA evidence confirmed he was the father of the child. O'Reilly continues to deny wrongdoing and shows no remorse. The judge described his actions as horrific and noted the prolonged, repetitive nature of the offences. The sentence reflects the severity and duration of the abuse.
In a hearing at the Central Criminal Court on 15 June 2020, the court considered whether isolation caused by coronavirus measures had led Maura Thornton, 38, to breach a condition of her suspended sentence for the manslaughter of her former partner Kevin Joyce, 59. Thornton had been sentenced in 2013 to ten years' imprisonment, with the final three years suspended on the condition that she address her alcohol problems. The court heard that Thornton may have exceeded her alcohol limits during the isolation period. The case was adjourned to 29 June. Thornton's 2011 killing of Joyce, an American, involved 18 stab wounds inflicted on Joyce outside her Salthill apartment. The court noted that Thornton had been drinking heavily that night and that she had called the Gardaí after the incident, but they could not interview her due to her intoxication. The judge had previously suspended three years of her sentence to encourage rehabilitation.
Imre Arakas, 62, was jailed by the Special Criminal Court for six years in December 2018 after admitting to conspiring with the Kinahan cartel to murder James Gately in Northern Ireland on 3–4 April 2017. He is serving his sentence in a segregated block at Portlaoise Prison. Lithuanian authorities suspect Arakas, a former ex‑wrestler and separatist, was part of a three‑man gang that planned to murder a man who had an affair with Lithuanian pop star Vita Jakutiene. Lithuanian police seek his surrender to face charges of murder, firearms offences, conspiracy related to the shooting of Deimantas Bugavicius, and a separate criminal damage charge. Arakas was arrested in Dublin in February 2018 under a European Arrest Warrant issued by Lithuania. He will challenge the extradition bid in October, with a hearing set for 9 October after a mention on 20 July. The court noted that his sentence is due to expire in October 2029.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, truck driver Prince Aibangbe (51) pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of 21‑year‑old Gerard Whyte on 31 May 2019. Aibangbe claimed he believed he had hit a kerb after mistakenly thinking a green filter light was on, but was later informed by his boss that dash‑cam footage showed he had driven through a red light at the Swords Road/Collins Avenue junction. Witnesses, including a bus driver and a truck driver, confirmed the truck broke the red light and that Whyte was crossing as the green man appeared. Aibangbe had nine prior convictions, including four for road traffic offences, and had recently been fined €400 for driving without insurance and failing to display an NCT. He expressed remorse, wrote a letter to the court, and asked the Whyte family for forgiveness.
In a case heard at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, William Gregory, aged 35, was sentenced to two years in prison for strangling his then‑partner on 22 January 2017. Gregory, who had been heavily intoxicated that day, became jealous after receiving a text message from another man. He pulled the woman by her hair, pinned her to the floor and wrapped an electric cord from a hair curler around her neck, tightening it until she lost consciousness. During the assault he threatened to kill her and spoke of her "last words" and "leaving in a body bag". The victim suffered bruising to her neck, chest and shoulder, significant weight loss and serious depression. Judge Melanie Greally noted Gregory's significant mental health issues stemming from a brain injury sustained in 2012, an organic personality disorder diagnosed in 2019, and his extreme low mental health in March 2019. William Gregory pleaded guilty.
John Power, 28, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for stealing a college student's wallet and phone and for assaulting Jamie O'Connor, a "Good Samaritan", on Westmoreland Street on 11 November last year. Power, who has 88 prior convictions, pleaded guilty to one count of theft and one count of assault causing harm. The incident occurred when Power, accompanied by a woman, took the victim's belongings from a counter at Offbeat Donuts. O'Connor, who was walking his baby, confronted them and was threatened with a Stanley blade. Power struck O'Connor's face, slashing his hand; O'Connor received nine stitches. Power was found guilty, expressed remorse, and was described by the judge as a "menace to society". The court imposed a four‑year sentence, suspending the final year on conditions, and noted Power's attempts at reform and drug‑free status. The woman's case remains pending.
The Special Criminal Court denied bail to John Costello, 39, of Hennessy Avenue, Kileely, Co Limerick, who is accused of facilitating the attempted murder of Christy Keane at the University of Limerick car park on 29 June 2015. Mr Costello is charged with knowledge of the existence of the McCarthy-Dundon criminal organisation and providing transport to persons with the intention of facilitating the offence. State counsel Anne-Marie Lawlor SC submitted Garda objection to bail under Section 2 of the Bail Act, citing a risk of further serious offences. Mr Justice Alexander Owens refused the application and remanded Mr Costello in custody until September 14 for the preparation of the Book of Evidence. Two co-accused were also remanded to the same date. Larry McCarthy, 42, of Tower Lodge, Old Cork Road, Limerick City, is charged with making a vehicle available to the criminal organisation between 27 and 29 June 2015. Noel Price, 42, of Kileely Road, Kileely, Limerick City, faces the same charge under Section 72 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment. The matter was adjourned for the preparation of the Book of Evidence.
Daragh Coyne was committed to Mountjoy prison by Mr Justice Anthony Barr after being found in contempt of High Court orders that prohibited him from interfering with lands designated as a National Heritage Area (NHA). The High Court had obtained injunctions from the National Parks and Wildlife Service preventing Coyne from carrying out any unauthorised works on or interfering with the NHA in Milltownpass Bog, Co. Westmeath. Coyne, who denied any wrongdoing, repeatedly challenged the court's jurisdiction and demanded to be called by his first name, but the judge insisted on addressing him as Mr Coyne or defendant. Coyne was given the opportunity to give a sworn undertaking to comply with the orders or face imprisonment; he refused, and the judge committed him to prison until he purges his contempt. The case will return to the court in four weeks.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, John Lennon, aged 40, pleaded guilty to robbery at Thomas Court pharmacy on 2 October 2019. Lennon, who had previously served a two‑year sentence for robbery and was due for release in January 2022, was also facing a consecutive one‑year term for burglary. During the robbery he brandished a screwdriver, demanded two packets of valium from the pharmacy staff while claiming he was hallucinating due to drug use, and left after the staff threw the packets at him. The judge, Martin Nolan, noted Lennon's history of offending but also his recent rehabilitation efforts and a guilty plea. He imposed a 16‑month sentence, consecutive to the existing two‑year term but concurrent with the pending burglary term, citing good hope for reform. The case highlighted Lennon's drug‑related motives and the lack of physical confrontation with staff.
John Carlos, 32, of Tallaght, Dublin, was sentenced at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for money laundering. The defendant pleaded guilty to the possession of €17,000, identified as the proceeds of criminal conduct, which was deposited into his Ulster Bank account on October 6, 2017. Prosecution evidence indicated the funds resulted from a fraudulent email sent to an English company, directing a payment for bulbs to Carlos's account. Carlos admitted the account was his and stated he did not know the source of the money, claiming he found it while checking for wages. He withdrew €4,900 to pay college fees and transferred €12,000 to a savings account before contacting the bank to alert them to the transaction. The bank subsequently froze the remaining €11,200. Carlos has no previous convictions and cooperated with gardai. Judge Martin Nolan considered the defendant's guilty plea, his cooperation, and the fact that he has not re-offended in the three years since the incident. The judge noted Carlos was working and contributing to the country. Judge Nolan imposed a two-year suspended sentence, stating: "You are getting your first and last chance."
In a Central Criminal Court hearing, a 58‑year‑old man was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for sexual assaults on 14 teenage girls between May 1994 and February 2001. He pleaded guilty in 2002 to ten of the assaults and received a nine‑year sentence with two years suspended. He denied three further assaults, but a jury convicted him of 30 counts involving four additional girls. The court imposed consecutive sentences: two years for the first victim, two‑and‑a‑half years for the second, two years for the third, and six months for the fourth, totaling seven years. The judge described him as a "true predator" who groomed victims with money, cigarettes and jewellery, and who used his flat as a refuge to facilitate abuse. The man had been convicted of burglary in Ireland and the UK and had been in custody since March 2018. No further charges were brought for his time in the UK.
In a hearing on 10 June 2020, Judge Martin Nolan was informed that Josh Boylan, 21, of Moneymore, Drogheda, and Keith Boylan, 25, of Park Heath, Drogheda, had "gone off the radar" and may be under threat. The prosecution, represented by Garnet Orange SC, noted that the men are facing serious charges, including false imprisonment, related to an incident on 11 November 2018 in Moneymore. The State is not seeking a bench warrant today but is looking to set a hearing for next week, when warrants may be applied for. The case was adjourned to 18 June.
The Central Criminal Court in Dublin heard that a 39‑year‑old man pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault against his 13‑year‑old cousin in 1995 and 1996. The victim, whose identity is protected, said the assaults occurred when the defendant was about 16. She described the first assault as the defendant rubbing his genitals against her outside her clothing and threatening her mother with a heart attack. In a second incident he pushed her onto a bed and molested her; she pushed him off but was too afraid to report it. The victim and her mother approached Gardaí around 1999, but no prosecution was pursued. The victim emigrated and could not attend the hearing; her impact statement was read by the prosecutor. The defendant expressed remorse, citing his youth and lack of awareness of wrongdoing, and requested a non‑custodial sentence. Justice Tara Burns adjourned sentencing to 18 June and remanded the defendant on bail.
Daragh Coyne, a defendant from Mullingar, Co Westmeath, appeared before the High Court on Wednesday following his arrest by gardai. He is alleged to be in contempt of court orders obtained by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), which prohibit him from interfering with Milltownpass Bog, a designated National Heritage Area. The NPWS claims Coyne failed to comply with an April injunction against unauthorised works and a subsequent order to remove a gate he erected on an old turf cutter's track. Sworn statements from two Park Rangers allege that turf was illegally cut and waste, including scrap metal, fuel, and invasive cherry laurel, was dumped on the site, damaging the NHA. They also noted turf-cutting equipment was stored nearby, despite Coyne denying its use. Coyne, who is unrepresented, told the court he did nothing wrong and objected to being addressed as "Mr Coyne," requesting to be called "Daragh." Justice Anthony Barr rejected this request for the hearing. Coyne claimed he had sent documents outlining his case to the court, but the judge stated there was no record of receipt. James O'Donnell BL, representing the NPWS, stated his client did not wish to see anyone jailed but had no alternative due to Coyne's failure to engage. In these circumstances, the judge adjourned the matter to Thursday's sitting, allowing Coyne to obtain copies of the documents setting out his position. The judge directed gardai to return Coyne to his home and bring him back to court, warning that the contempt hearing would proceed in his absence if he failed to return.
A 20-year-old man has been sentenced to five years imprisonment at the Central Criminal Court for the manslaughter of a teenager in Castlebar, County Mayo. The defendant, who cannot be named under court order, was convicted in July 2017 of fatally stabbing 17-year-old Dovydas Jenkas in the early hours of December 19, 2015. The victim, from Mount Street in Claremorris, died from a single stab wound. Justice Eileen Creedon imposed a headline sentence of nine years, reduced to six years with the final year suspended, taking into account the defendant's age at the time—he was fifteen—and subsequent conduct. The judge noted he immediately admitted responsibility, expressed genuine remorse, and has cooperated fully with gardaí and probation services. She found no evidence of prior conflict between the youths and highlighted that the defendant was armed while the victim was not. Sentencing was delayed multiple times owing to the defendant's medical condition, requiring brain surgery. The victim's family has stated they remain devastated by his death. The unnamed 20-year-old was acquitted.
Four men faced the Special Criminal Court on charges of false imprisonment and assault causing serious harm to Kevin Lunney, a director of Quinn Industrial Holdings, at Drumbrade, Ballinagh, County Cavan on 17 September 2019. Luke O'Reilly, Darren Redmond, and Alan O'Brien were named in court, while a fourth defendant cannot be identified for legal reasons. The trial is scheduled to commence on 21 January 2021. The court heard that the case involves approximately 50,000 documents requiring digital processing, with disclosure expected within four to six weeks. O'Reilly and Redmond had their bail extended to January, while O'Brien and the fourth accused were remanded in custody. A vehicle belonging to the unnamed defendant and seized as evidence was destroyed while in Garda possession, described as occurring "apparently by accident". The defence sought full disclosure regarding the vehicle's destruction. Presiding Judge Tony Hunt ordered the four men to have no contact with persons involved in the case and issued an alibi warning.
Anthony Finglas, 49, of Havelock Place, Warrenpoint, Co Down, was denied bail by the Special Criminal Court after being accused of assaulting, falsely imprisoning, robbing and demanding €50,000 from businessman Edward McAndrew at One Ferry Hill, Cornamucklash, Omeath, Co Louth, on or about 2 December 2017. The court considered the seriousness of the offences and the risk that Finglas might abscond or interfere with witnesses. Two co‑accused, Thomas McGuinness, 33, and William Twomey, 56, had already been granted bail. Finglas's defence argued that he had no means to leave the country, no prior convictions while on bail, and had not contacted McAndrew in the two‑and‑a‑half years since the alleged offences. A family member offered €22,500 for a bond.
The Special Criminal Court heard evidence regarding a plot by the Kinahan organised crime group to murder Patrick 'Patsy' Hutch. At a sentence hearing, Michael Burns, Ciaran O'Driscoll, and Stephen Curtis admitted to facilitating the intended killing. Burns pleaded guilty to passing instructions, acting as a communications conduit, transporting members, and planning the shooting. O'Driscoll pleaded guilty to acting as a look-out and assisting in planning. Curtis admitted to providing mobile phones, SIM cards, and credit, and assisting in planning. The court heard that the gang paid €20,000 for setting up hits and maintained a hierarchical structure. Detective Superintendent David Gallagher detailed the three-stage plan, including a staging post, a ruse to lure the victim, and a getaway route. The court accepted that the gang is involved in execution-type murders. Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding with Judges Sarah Berkeley and Dermot Dempsey, remanded the three men in custody until June 29, when they will be sentenced. In a related matter, Mark Capper was jailed for seven-and-a-half years for providing vehicles and reconnaissance. Previously, Gary Thompson, Glen Thompson, and Robert Browne were sentenced to 12 years and six months, 12 years and six months, and 11 years and six months, respectively, for planning the murder.
Alfa So, 31, a Portuguese national, was arrested at Dublin Airport on 3 July 2019 after customs officers discovered over €51,000 worth of cocaine in a wine box he carried. The drugs, 70% pure, were packed into 73 pellets with the intention of ingestion, but So admitted he could not swallow them and instead concealed them in the wine box. He pleaded guilty to one count of importing drugs, claiming he bought them from a friend in Africa and intended to sell them to buy a farm in Portugal. So had no prior convictions and expressed remorse. The Dublin Circuit Criminal Court sentenced him to two years' imprisonment, a term backdated to his arrest, citing his foreign status and the difficulty of his custody conditions. The sentence was imposed after he pleaded guilty early and was found to be remorseful.
In a Central Criminal Court hearing, a 58‑year‑old Dublin man was found guilty of 30 counts of sexual assault against four girls, having previously pleaded guilty to ten similar offences in 2002 and 2003. He received a nine‑year sentence with the final two years suspended. The court heard victim impact statements from three of the four women, who described long‑term emotional damage, drug use, abusive relationships and a sense of survivor identity. The judge adjourned the case for finalisation. The accused, who had been in custody since March 2018 after extradition from the UK, had also been convicted of burglary in both Ireland and the UK. No new charges were brought for his time in the UK, where he worked at a homeless charity centre. The court considered his prior sentence and the possibility of a lenient sentence. The hearing concluded with the judge setting a date for finalisation. The unnamed 58-year-old pleaded not guilty.
Christopher Maguire, 42, of Moatview Close, Priorswood, Dublin, was convicted in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 10 May 2019 for producing an article, assault, and threats to kill or seriously harm his sister and her husband at Killester Avenue, Killester. He also pleaded guilty on 6 September 2019 to two counts of intimidating a witness at Harry Byrne's public house, Howth Road, Clontarf. For these offences he received a combined 21‑month sentence. In January 2018, Maguire had previously been given a three‑year suspended sentence by the Special Criminal Court for his role in a "mob" that falsely imprisoned Martin Byrne and Lisa Byrne in Saggart on 9 June 2015. The Special Criminal Court judge, Mr Justice Tony Hunt, reactivated that suspended sentence following the recent Circuit Court conviction. The judge noted that the original sentence was an "exceptional chance" and that Maguire was not the most serious player.
Carlos Michael Mason, a 31‑year‑old UK national, was sentenced to one year in prison for fraudulently using a stolen American Express card to stay at Dublin's Shelbourne and Westbury hotels. Between 29 December 2019 and 19 January 2020, he accrued €3,735 at the Shelbourne and €4,700 at the Westbury, enjoying fine wine and dining. Gardaí identified him from CCTV and noted his distinctive multi‑coloured jacket. He pleaded guilty to two counts of dishonestly inducing the hotels to accept the fraudulent card. The court back‑dated the sentence to February, when he entered custody. Mason has 71 prior convictions, many for theft and fraud, and faces a European Arrest Warrant for other alleged offences in the UK.
The Special Criminal Court has sentenced Mark Capper to eight years and three months imprisonment, with the final nine months suspended, for facilitating the Kinahan organised crime group in planning the murder of Patrick Hutch. Presiding Judge Tony Hunt accepted garda evidence that the cartel operates a hierarchical structure involving execution-style murders and international trafficking of drugs and firearms. Capper, who pleaded guilty in March to participating in activities intended to facilitate a serious offence, was found to have intentionally assisted in the plot before withdrawing three days prior to the attempted killing. The judge noted Capper's financial motivation and drug addiction as mitigating factors, reducing his headline sentence of 11 years by 25 percent for his early plea. This sentencing follows the July 2019 convictions of Gary Thompson, Glen Thompson, and Robert Browne, who were jailed for 12.5 years, 12.5 years, and 11.5 years respectively for unlawful possession of four firearms with intent to endanger life during the same operation. The court emphasized that the prevention of the murder was due to police intervention, not the defendants' actions.
Thomas Stokes, aged 30, was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for a high‑speed pursuit that left Garda Thomas Bialkowski seriously injured. Stokes pleaded guilty to two counts of endangerment, one count of assaulting Garda Bialkowski, one count of dangerous driving, and a separate count of criminal damage. The judge imposed four‑and‑a‑half years for endangerment and two‑and‑a‑half years for criminal damage, to run consecutively, giving an effective term of seven years. The final two years were suspended on strict conditions. The pursuit began when Gardaí approached Stokes' car at Dublin Port; after a brief attempt to stop him, Stokes fled, driving at up to 180 km/h, swerving across lanes, and eventually crashing into a wall on Cookstown Way, Tallaght. The crash caused the Garda's firearm butt to strike him, injuring his teeth, eye, arm and shoulder.
In a 2020 case, a 29‑year‑old man from County Kildare was found guilty of raping two boys. He used his membership in a voluntary paramedic organisation to gain the boys' trust and drugged them with Penthrox, a pain‑relief drug normally used by medical professionals. In the first incident, a 15‑year‑old was forced to inhale the drug through an oxygen mask and was then orally raped. In the second, the man raped an unconscious child while another man recorded the assault on a mobile phone. The defendant pleaded guilty to oral rape, sexual assault, sexual exploitation and aiding the production of child pornography. He was sentenced to eleven years' imprisonment, with eighteen months suspended, and was ordered to abstain from any work involving children and to attend probation treatment programmes.
Richard O'Doherty, 24, of Crumlin, pleaded guilty to a series of knife‑point robberies committed while on bail for earlier offences. He admitted to robberies at Maxol Station, Harold's Cross and Centra on 23 June 2019, a further robbery at Kimmage Road Lower on 8 August 2019, two robberies on 24 and 25 November 2019, and an attempted robbery at Spar on 20 December 2019. Garda reports detail how he entered each shop with a knife, demanded money, and in some cases took cash from tills or forced shopkeepers to hand over money. He had no prior convictions. The court sentenced him to three years for the earliest robbery, two additional years for the later offences, with the sentences to run consecutively. The final 18 months were suspended on strict conditions, giving an effective custodial term of three‑and‑a‑half years.
A 33‑year‑old Moldovan man, Alerian Burcovsehi, was sentenced to 32 months' imprisonment for a savage assault on 26 April 2019 that left victim Jason Brophy with fractures to his skull, nose, ribs and spine. Burcovsehi, who had no prior convictions, approached Brophy on Price's Lane, knocked him to the ground and repeatedly struck him, including kicking his head and striking his face with his heel. Garda Christopher Fitzgerald reported that Burcovsehi had been seen outside a nightclub the previous evening, behaving erratically and doing press‑ups on the pavement. In a CCTV interview he admitted the assault and said, "I do deserve to be locked up." Brophy, barely conscious when police arrived, suffered severe injuries and now lives with balance problems, difficulty dressing, and a reliance on liquefied foods. Burcovsehi denied drug use but admitted alcohol consumption and was described by the defence as operating under a personality disorder. The unnamed man pleaded guilty.
A 29‑year‑old former voluntary paramedic was found guilty of orally raping a 15‑year‑old boy and sexually assaulting another child after drugging them with Penthrox, a powerful pain‑relief agent. In the first incident, the accused used an oxygen mask to force the boy to inhale the drug, then sexually assaulted him. In the second, the boy was unconscious while the accused orally raped him and another man recorded the act on a mobile phone. The defendant pleaded guilty to oral rape, sexual exploitation, aiding and abetting child pornography, sexual assault and theft of Penthrox and a carbon dioxide chamber. He was suspended from the paramedic organisation and a nursing course. The court heard that the whistle device had been altered to increase potency, and that the defendant had searched online for ways to incapacitate victims. The case was adjourned to Wednesday for sentencing.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing on 25 May 2020, 36‑year‑old Ciaran O'Brien pleaded guilty to robbing the Applegreen Service Station in Celbridge on 27 November 2019. He entered the station armed with a hammer and a small machete, forced the shop assistant to open the till, and took €360 in cash before fleeing. While off‑duty, Garda PJ Cummins witnessed the robbery and pursued O'Brien. O'Brien threatened Cummins with a knife, saying he would stab him, and then drove a car straight at the Garda, forcing Cummins to jump out of the way to avoid being run over. O'Brien was later arrested and has 27 previous convictions. The case was adjourned for a Probation Services report, with sentencing scheduled for 20 July.
Alex Harris, aged 38, was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to two burglary charges and the theft of a laptop from an unlocked ambulance between 26 July and 4 November 2019. The ambulance, parked on Dorset Street Upper, was left with its doors closed but unlocked while a paramedic attended a patient. Harris, who was on bail for a prior burglary, was identified through CCTV footage and DNA evidence. He had 63 previous convictions and a long history of heroin addiction, which he claimed motivated the offences. The court noted his desire to seek residential drug treatment and become a better father. Judge Martin Nolan imposed an 18‑month term for the earliest burglary and a consecutive 18‑month term for the laptop theft, totaling three years of imprisonment.
In a Dublin court hearing, Thomas Stokes, aged 30 and with 171 prior convictions, was charged after a high‑speed chase that ended with a Garda car crashing into a wall. Stokes, who drove at speeds up to 180 km/h and swerved aggressively, was attempting to flee from Gardaí who had approached his vehicle at Dublin Port. The pursuit resumed on the M50, where Stokes braked hard and crashed, causing the Garda car to swerve into a wall. The impact forced the Garda's firearm butt into his face, resulting in severe eye and facial injuries, soft‑tissue damage to his arm and shoulder, and damage to his teeth. Stokes was arrested nearby and has remained in custody, except for a brief compassionate bail in March. He pleaded guilty to two counts of endangerment, one count of assaulting a Garda, one count of dangerous driving, and one count of criminal damage. He will be sentenced on Wednesday.
Ruth Ben Haim, a 19‑year‑old from Tel Aviv, was stopped at Dublin Airport after arriving from Finland with nearly €20,000 worth of the plant stimulant khat. The plant, legal in Israel in its natural form, is a controlled substance in Ireland. Ben Haim pleaded guilty to possession of drugs for sale or supply. She was dealt with by the Garda Juvenile Liaison and returned to Israel without charge, having spent a week in custody and then released on bail. The court, noting her age and lack of prior convictions, imposed a fully suspended one‑year sentence, requiring her to keep the peace and behave well for one year. The case was heard by Judge Martin Nolan, with counsel for the prosecution and defence present. The other girl on the flight was also found with a similar amount of khat. The court heard that the plant is widely used in north‑east African countries such as Somalia.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Shane Cooney, aged 29, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for a series of burglaries that included the Sinn Fein constituency office of TD Aengus O Snodaigh and Senator Maire Devine on 20 March 2018. Cooney and an accomplice stole laptops, mobile phones and other items from the office. He also pleaded guilty to burglaries at Insomnia coffee shop and Tesco Express on South Circular Road on 5 April 2018, and at Puro clothing store on Wicklow Street on 16 December 2018, where he stole nearly €4,000 in cash. The court noted he had 93 prior convictions, had caused damage to the front doors of Tesco and Insomnia, and had a history of drug addiction. Judge Patricia Ryan considered mitigating factors such as early guilty pleas and rehabilitation efforts, and reactivated an 18‑month suspended sentence from a previous aggravated burglary, incorporating it into the three‑year term.
A 51‑year‑old man named Jessie O'Dwyer, who has a long criminal record, was jailed for a robbery of a pharmacy in Dublin city centre. He pleaded guilty to the robbery, which took place on 11 February 2019 when he entered Blackhall pharmacy on Ellis Quay, threatened staff, and used a scarf to cover his face while shouting for the till to be opened. The pharmacist, fearing he might be armed, opened the till, and security staff tackled him. O'Dwyer was found to have been abusing crack cocaine at the time of the offence. In court, his lawyers argued that he wanted to change and address his addiction. Judge Martin Nolan acknowledged his desire for reform, noted his good behaviour in custody, and suspended the final two years of a three‑and‑a‑half‑year sentence on the condition that he remain peaceful and engage with the Probation Service.
Justice Eileen Creedon will hear medical evidence at the Central Criminal Court regarding whether a young man with a serious brain condition can be imprisoned, three years after his conviction for manslaughter. The offender, now aged 20 and subject to a legal anonymity order, was found guilty of the fatal stabbing of Dovydas Jenkas, aged 17, in Castlebar, County Mayo, in December 2015. He had been acquitted of murder. The court previously heard that Mr Jenkas, from Mount Street in Claremorris, sustained a single stab wound. The judge has indicated the victim's family requires closure and that the defendant should prepare for a custodial sentence. Since conviction, the offender has undergone treatment for his brain condition, including a surgical procedure in 2018. Sentencing has been repeatedly deferred pending medical assessment and court monitoring.
Amir Essalhi, 35, of Burg an Ri Walk, Balgaddy, Clondalkin, Dublin, pleaded guilty to four armed robberies and one attempted robbery committed over a nine‑day period in November 2018. The incidents included robberies at Ebano Hair & Beauty Salon, Ballinteer Shopping Centre, Centra on Drummartin Road, Centra on Ballinteer Road, and an attempted robbery at Spar on Rockville Road, Blackrock. Essalhi admitted possession of weapons ranging from a screwdriver to a knife at each event, with threats of violence but no actual violence. He has 65 prior convictions for robbery, arson, burglary and assault causing harm. Judge Martin Nolan, noting the seriousness of the offences and the mitigating effect of Essalhi's guilty pleas, sentenced him to four‑and‑a‑half years' imprisonment. The defence highlighted Essalhi's background, his brother's murder in 2011, his drug‑free status at the time of the offences, his two children and parental support, and his remorse, requesting leniency.
Lawrence Mubango, 31, was already serving a 10‑year prison term for a 2018 knife attack that left a victim severely injured. In 2017 he pleaded guilty to using a stolen credit‑card machine at Mary's Pub in Dublin. The court heard that on the day of the offence he had the machine for less than ten minutes, activated the refund function and entered €7,500, but the transaction was cancelled before any money was transferred, so the pub suffered no loss. CCTV captured him taking the machine from behind the bar. Judge Martin Nolan described the attempt to steal €7,500 as "absolutely asinine" and, considering it a minor matter compared with the earlier violent offence, sentenced Mubango to three months' imprisonment, to run consecutively with his existing sentence. The court noted that without his current sentence the penalty would have been considerably longer.
Tara Fay, 46, was sentenced to a fully suspended two‑year imprisonment for burgling St Michael's secondary school on Wellmount Road, Finglas, on 4 October 2016. She admitted trespassing and stealing jumpers, tracksuits, €250 in cash and a mobile phone. Fay told Gardaí she was stealing to pay for drugs. The judge, Patricia Ryan, noted the offence was aggravated by its consequences, though the amount stolen was small, and cited Fay's guilty plea, cooperation and rehabilitation efforts as mitigating factors. She was given a suspended sentence on the condition of keeping the peace and good behaviour for three years. The school's principal, John Barry, said the burglary contributed to a €10,000 rise in the school's insurance costs over two years, a figure insurers attributed to claims made by schools for theft and damage. Dean Kelly BL, Fay's defence lawyer, highlighted her abusive relationship and the murder of her partner.
Christopher Maguire, 42, was sentenced to 21 months' imprisonment in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for a series of violent and threatening offences. He pleaded guilty to assaulting his sister Nicola Byrne and to making threats to kill or seriously harm her and her husband David Byrne on 10 May 2019 at Killester Avenue. He also pleaded guilty to two counts of intimidating a witness at Harry Byrne's pub on 6 September 2019. Earlier, he had been convicted of false imprisonment and drug possession. During the May incident, Gardaí found him holding a kitchen knife and he threatened David Byrne with a "sawn‑off shotgun" and later claimed to have a gun. In September he threatened to shoot both Byrne and his sister after purchasing a gun. The judge, Martin Nolan, found the threats credible and imposed consecutive sentences of six months for the earlier offences and 15 months for the later ones, totaling 21 months of imprisonment.
In a 2019 burglary at a Dublin home, Laurence Connors (28) was caught driving a stolen Audi while four accomplices looted cash and jewellery. Garda Ronan Doyle and Garda Declan Crowley confronted Connors, who drove past the patrol car and then stopped to let the burglars board. Crowley attempted to stop him, but Connors accelerated, dragging Crowley 40 metres and crashing into a parked Fiat Punto. Crowley was injured, requiring stitches, while the Fiat owner was unharmed. Connors was arrested, pleaded guilty to trespass, possession of a stolen car, assaulting a garda and criminal damage, and was sentenced to 20 months in prison, to run consecutively with a 10‑year term for a prior burglary. He has 37 prior convictions and is due for release in 2025. The case highlighted the physical harm to the garda and the financial loss to the homeowner.
Karl Mullen, 49, was sentenced to three‑and‑a‑half years in prison for criminal damage, two counts of dangerous driving and driving without insurance after he drove a car into the front of a house in Clondalkin on 27 October 2018. He reversed his vehicle through the front gates, crashed into the front window and then drove off, leaving the back bumper in the front garden. Mullen gave no explanation for his actions, claiming he was "in a very bad way on drugs" at the time. He was arrested during a Garda pursuit that ended when his vehicle struck bollards and stopped. Mullen has 49 prior convictions, including 19 for road traffic offences and a four‑year robbery sentence he is currently serving. He was also disqualified from driving for four years. The judge noted his drug use and the fear caused to the homeowner. The case was heard at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Karl Mullen pleaded guilty.
Two brothers, Brian (21) and Martin Stokes (18), were sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison after they robbed a pizza delivery driver, Paul Wright, on November 21, 2019. The robbery took place on Wellmont Road, Finglas, where the brothers had been given a lift by Wright. While driving the brothers to an address, one of them forced Wright to hand over his money, leading to a physical assault that left Wright with a black eye, a swollen jaw and a severe headache. The brothers stole €150 in cash, a mobile phone, car keys and a wallet with bank cards. They were later stopped on Finglas Road, found in possession of the stolen cards, and resisted arrest. Both pleaded guilty to robbery, possession of stolen property and resisting arrest, and were sentenced by Judge Martin Nolan, who described the robbery as "particularly nasty.".
Graham Gardner, 35, was jailed for nine years after police found two machine guns, three revolvers, two silencers and 107 rounds of ammunition in the boot of a Ford Focus van. The van, which had a hidden compartment accessed by a pulley system, was discovered in an underground carpark near where Gardaí had approached Gardner. Gardner, who wore a bulletproof vest and carried a key he claimed was a spare, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of firearms and ammunition. He had 40 prior convictions for minor offences. Gardaí found his DNA on the weapons and noted that the van and a second vehicle had been bought under false names. Gardner had fled to England after failing to attend a court hearing, but later surrendered and was extradited back to Ireland. The judge accepted his admissions and the seriousness of the case, sentencing him to nine years in custody, backdated to his September 2023 arrest.
Imre Arakas, 62, a former Estonian separatist, is jailed in Portlaoise Prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to murder James Gately in Northern Ireland in April 2017. He received a six‑year sentence from the Special Criminal Court in December 2018. Lithuanian authorities suspect Arakas was part of a three‑man gang that planned the murder of a man who had an affair with Lithuanian pop star Vita Jakutiene. They seek his surrender on a European Arrest Warrant, alleging he faces charges of murder, firearms offences and conspiracy related to the shooting of Deimantas Bugavicius. Arakas was arrested in Dublin in February 2018 under the EAW. His extradition hearing date will be set next month, with the case adjourned for four weeks until 15 June. He remains remanded in custody awaiting that hearing. The hearing will be conducted via video‑link from Portlaoise Prison.
A Dublin man, Mr Ryan Byrne of St Teresa's Road Crumlin, has filed a High Court judicial review against the Garda Commissioner and the Superintendent of Enniscorthy Garda Station. The challenge concerns the seizure and continued retention of his car following his arrest on 16 April for an alleged false imprisonment charge. Byrne was released from Crumlin Station on 17 April, but his vehicle was seized as part of the investigation, which the court says is being conducted by Gardai in Co Wexford. He was told he could retrieve the car on 18 April, but upon returning he was informed that release required a Garda Sergeant from Gorey, Co Wexford. Byrne's solicitor, Mr Tony Collier, has requested the car's return, but it remains in Dublin. Byrne, who is unemployed, argues the car is essential for family reasons, particularly to obtain medicine for his asthmatic son amid the Covid‑19 pandemic.
Patrick Hand, aged 38, admitted to attempting a robbery at an Abbey Street Luas stop on 15 July 2017. He claimed he may have been hallucinating after taking cocaine and alcohol, believing the victim's bag was his. Hand had just been released from prison the day before the incident. Gardaí arrested him after Luas security restrained him. In court, Hand pleaded guilty to attempted robbery. Judge Melanie Greally accepted his admission of drug addiction and homelessness post‑release, noting his efforts to address these issues. She imposed a four‑and‑a‑half‑year sentence, suspending the final two and a half years on the condition that he remain peaceful, reside in County Meath, and engage with addiction services. The sentence was back‑dated to 19 December 2018 when Hand entered custody.
Stephen Keogh, a former Anglo Irish Bank employee, was sentenced to five-and-a-half years' imprisonment for stealing €611,139.35 from seven victims, mainly friends and family, between 2002 and 2010. He persuaded relatives and acquaintances to invest large sums in high‑interest accounts, but deposited the money into his own account and provided false documents to conceal the theft. Keogh also used his wife's credit card without her knowledge and took money from a brother‑in‑law and a best man to pay for cars that were never registered in their names. He fled to the United States in 2010, returned in 2011, and later worked for a company servicing U.S. military bases in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was arrested in November 2019 and, after a guilty plea, was found to have created a fiction of success and lived beyond his means, leading the judge to sentence him for the extensive financial harm caused to his victims.
John McDonagh, a 30‑year‑old father of four from Labre Park, Ballyfermot, was sentenced to 20 months in prison after pleading guilty to endangerment, drink driving and driving without insurance. The offences occurred on 27 July 2019 when Gardaí were conducting an alcohol checkpoint on Kilmore Road. McDonagh was signalled to pull over but instead accelerated, overtook other vehicles dangerously, drove the wrong way around a roundabout, and continued at high speed on the M50 and M1 motorways. He was eventually stopped, found over the legal alcohol limit and without insurance. The judge described the conduct as a "litany of episodes of reckless and dangerous driving", noting that McDonagh endangered and terrified other road users. He was sentenced to three years' imprisonment, with the final 16 months suspended and a four‑year driving ban imposed.
Robert Kinlan, 33, of Ballygall Parade, Finglas, Dublin, was sentenced at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for offences committed on October 20, 2018. Kinlan pleaded guilty to charges of attempted robbery and robbery at Cuffe Street, Dublin 2. Judge Melanie Greally noted that Kinlan had a "lamentable history" of previous convictions, including numerous robberies. The court heard that Kinlan was arrested the night before the incident for another robbery and was released on bail. During the daylight offence, he allegedly threatened a victim, pushing him against a gate and causing facial injuries, including a broken nose, while demanding his phone and wallet. Kinlan was subsequently arrested after a witness identified him on a Luas tram. Judge Greally imposed a prison sentence of four and a half years. However, she suspended the final two years of the term, resulting in an effective custody period of three and a half years. The suspension is conditional upon Kinlan keeping the peace and engaging with drug treatment during that period. The Judge acknowledged Kinlan's difficult start in life and his current engagement with Probation Services.