A Dublin man has been sentenced to four years imprisonment following a money-laundering conviction at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Jonathon O'Connor, aged 38, pleaded guilty to concealing over €870,000 in cash at a rural property in Dromore, Bailieboro, Co Cavan on 28 July 2020. During a garda surveillance operation at the address, officers discovered €870,620 in euro and £14,890 in sterling, distributed across 21 separate cash exhibits found in sheds and outhouses. O'Connor, from Elm Road, Donnycarney, Dublin, immediately disclosed a further €80,000 in his vehicle. When questioned, he declined to identify the money's owner, stating his life would be endangered. He admitted transporting and storing the funds but offered no explanation for an apparent obligation to a third party. Judge Martin Nolan accepted O'Connor's full cooperation and clean criminal record but determined that custodial sentencing was warranted given the serious nature of money laundering.
Martin Gilsenan, 50, of Kilwarden Court, Boot Road, Clondalkin, Dublin 22, was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for allowing his apartment to be used by a gang to store over €800,000 worth of drugs. He pleaded guilty on 16 October 2018 to possessing cannabis resin, cannabis herb and cocaine for sale and supply at his home. Gardaí, acting on confidential information, observed a courier van unloading boxes into the flat and seized large quantities of cocaine and cannabis, a weighing scale and a cutting agent. Gilsenan admitted he was "in it to clear a debt" and was described as a vulnerable person with alcohol addiction and mental health difficulties. The judge accepted mitigating factors and suspended the final three years of the sentence, imposing a year's probation supervision upon release. The case was heard before Dublin Circuit Criminal Court by Judge Karen O'Connor.
Kelly Noble, 36, of Hogan Court, Dublin, pleaded guilty to two violent robberies in the city centre on 24 September 2017, one of which left a victim needing an ambulance. She also pleaded guilty to two attempted robbery counts. The court noted her previous six‑year imprisonment for manslaughter and 20 other convictions. Judge Melanie Greally sentenced her to four years' imprisonment, fully suspended on strict conditions, including 12 months of probation. The judge highlighted that Noble acted under a male accomplice's instructions but was responsible for her actions. The sentencing reflected her traumatic early life and recent attempts at stability and reformed relationships with her children and mother. The court emphasised that the offences caused great anxiety and were not inconsequential. The sentence was imposed at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Michael Murray, a convicted rapist, was sentenced to 16 further years in prison at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for death threats and harassment. The validated procedural stage is an appeal, though the report details the sentencing following his guilty verdict. Murray, who pleaded not guilty to most charges, was found guilty of threatening barristers Dominic McGinn SC and Tony McGillicuddy BL, harassing his rape victim, and possessing a mobile phone in prison. He had previously been jailed for 19 years for rape and abduction. Judge O'Connor described his actions as an "unprecedented and deliberate" abuse of process. Murray was excluded from the hearing after throwing a Bible at the judge. The court imposed nine years for the threat to Mr McGinn and seven years for the threat to Mr McGillicuddy. Additional sentences included seven years for harassing the victim, four years each for harassing Mr McGinn and a solicitor, and five years for phone possession. The nine-year and seven-year sentences were ordered to be served consecutively, resulting in an effective operative sentence of 16 years, to be served after his original 19-year term. Murray was also ordered to have no contact with the three harassed individuals for 30 years. No mitigation was presented.
Samantha Irwin, 37, lost her appeal against a five‑year sentence for a syringe‑assisted robbery at Real Brazil in Dublin on 20 September 2018. During the incident she grabbed the shop assistant by the jumper, uncapped a syringe and tried to strike her arm; the assistant pulled her arm out of the jumper and the robbery was stopped. Irwin handed over €55 to the shop manager. She was identified by a bloodstained post‑it that fell from her pocket, which Gardai matched to her DNA. The court noted her 19 prior convictions, mainly traffic offences, and the use of a syringe as a key factor in sentencing. The judge suspended 18 months of the five‑year term; the appeal was dismissed by Justice Patrick McCarthy, who found no error in the original sentencing. The case was heard in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Samantha Irwin pleaded guilty.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Judge Elma Sheahan condemned the brutal assault carried out by Martina Rooney (39) against another woman over a €50 dispute. Rooney repeatedly punched and stabbed the victim, causing extensive facial bruising and lacerations to the back, buttock and thigh. She was sentenced to nine years' imprisonment, with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions. Karl Fishe (35), who assisted by holding the victim's hair, received a two‑year and eight‑month sentence, with the final eight months suspended and a 16‑month probation period. The court noted the attack's duration of about nine minutes and the victim's lasting physical and psychological harm, including panic attacks and loss of joy over an impending pregnancy. Rooney's prior 73 convictions and Fishe's 124 convictions were also recorded. The case was built on CCTV, DNA evidence and Garda testimony. Martina Rooney pleaded guilty. Karl Fishe pleaded guilty.
A 23‑year‑old homeless woman, Kelly McAuley, who was pregnant, pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to robbing €790 from William O'Brien at an Ulster Bank ATM on O'Connell Street on 1 May 2020. O'Brien had warned her to stay back, but when the cash was dispensed McAuley grabbed the money, leading to a tussle. Two passers‑by intervened and recovered €290, which was returned to O'Brien. CCTV footage led to McAuley's arrest. She has 63 prior convictions and had been homeless for five to six years, with a child born seven months earlier. The judge, Martin Nolan, noted she made no attempt to harm O'Brien and sentenced her to three years' imprisonment, with the final 18 months suspended on strict conditions, back‑dated to 19 February 2021.
Joseph Smith, 36, was jailed for three years after he fired a shotgun twice at his partner's Ford Focus during a heated argument. The incident occurred on Whitechapel Road, Blanchardstown, where Smith had taken the shotgun from his home and discharged it, smashing the car's windows. Gardaí found a double‑barrel sawn‑off shotgun and cartridges in a Mazda parked at Smith's address, linking the weapon to him. Smith pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm in suspicious circumstances. The court noted his prior drug‑related difficulties and his efforts at rehabilitation, but also his role as a father to three children. Judge Martin Nolan described the offence as a "fit of anger" and imposed a three‑year sentence, crediting any time already served.
Lee Bergin, 41, a legally blind man, was found guilty of operating an illegal cable‑TV service. He transmitted decryption codes from legitimate viewing cards over the internet, enabling customers to watch cable broadcasts without paying. Gardaí discovered computers, card readers, and set‑top boxes at his former Stoneybatter address, and the court heard how the cards were used to descramble signals. Bergin pleaded guilty to dishonestly operating a computer in 2015 and had no prior convictions. He expressed remorse and claimed his wife was uninvolved. Judge Elma Sheahan described the offence as sophisticated, noted his genuine regret, and, believing he was on a path to rehabilitation, imposed a two‑and‑a‑half‑year sentence fully suspended on strict conditions. The sentence was suspended in its entirety, with no custodial term imposed.
A 37‑year‑old former child carer, whose name is withheld to protect his daughter, admitted to Gardaí that he photographed his daughter, aged about seven or eight, exiting a shower and sent the image online in exchange for explicit photos of his nephew. He pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing, producing and disseminating child pornography and one count of possessing a child sexual abuse image, all relating to Skype conversations from 17–20 February 2016. At a sentence hearing in May, the court noted he had previously been arrested in June 2019 after being flagged for accessing online child sex abuse material. He received a two‑year suspended sentence from Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, with the suspension contingent on engagement with the Probation Service, sex‑offender treatment, and therapeutic work. The judge emphasised that the suspended term would involve intensive supervision and that the defendant is prohibited from unsupervised contact with children. No custodial time is imposed.
Slawomir Gierlowski, 37, a father of two from Galtymore Drive, Drimnagh, was convicted of three premeditated attacks on women in Clondalkin between 2011 and 2016. The attacks included a daylight assault with a hunting knife and two late‑night sexual assaults. Witnesses linked a suspect van to Gierlowski, and DNA evidence matched his DNA to a victim's nails and semen on another victim's clothing. Gardaí also found duct tape and cable ties in the van, used in the assaults. A jury found him guilty on all nine charges, including false imprisonment, sexual assault, assault and possession of a hunting knife with intent to intimidate. Judge Pauline Codd imposed consecutive sentences of eight years, nine and a half years and five years, suspending the final four years on the condition of completing sex offender programmes. The sentence was upheld after Gierlowski's appeal to the Court of Appeal was dismissed. Slawomir Gierlowski pleaded not guilty.
Alan Behan, aged 29, was sentenced to five years in prison for hijacking a car, threatening the driver, and crashing it. Earlier that year he had stolen personal effects and money from a building site, breaching bond conditions imposed after a four‑year suspended sentence for stealing €2,500 from an elderly man in 2016. Behan pleaded guilty to unlawful seizure of a motor vehicle on Capel Street, trespass and theft from a building site on Middle Abbey Street, dangerous driving, driving without a licence and without insurance. Gardaí used CCTV to trace his movements, showing him entering a building site, taking a hard hat and high‑visibility jacket, and later driving the hijacked Toyota Corolla over Grattan Bridge into the south city area. He was arrested after crashing the vehicle into two stationary cars on Walkinstown Avenue.
Kenneth Lynch, 32, a former special needs assistant, was found with over €4,000 of cocaine and €10,000 in cash in his home in Clondalkin. He pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine for sale or supply at his address on 23 August 2018. Lynch had 11 prior convictions for road traffic offences. Judge Pauline Codd sentenced him to four years imprisonment but suspended the entire sentence for five years on strict conditions, ordering him to engage with the Probation Service for two years and attend regular urine testing. Lynch acknowledged the drugs were intended for sale, having paid €1,500 for them and expecting to double his money. He claimed the cash came from people who owed him money or were savings. The judge noted his history of drug use was linked to a "party lifestyle" and that he had lost his way after a tragedy. The case was heard at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Craig White, 24, a schizophrenic man, was found guilty of endangerment, criminal damage, failure to remain at the scene, driving without insurance, dangerous driving and theft. He drove a stolen motorcycle on a footpath in Ratoath, Finglas, in July 2017, ignoring stop and yield signs, and collided with a VW Polo and a courier's motorbike. The courier, William Murray, was thrown from his bike, sustaining a right‑elbow injury that required surgery, and suffered an estimated loss of earnings of over €13,000. White's motorcycle was written off. He had 12 prior convictions, including for dangerous driving and driving without insurance. The court, noting his schizophrenia and treatment, imposed a suspended sentence of three years for the driving offences and four months for the theft, with strict conditions to continue medication.
Jack Manning, aged 85, a former Christian Brother, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for nine counts of indecent assault on four pupils aged six to eight at Westland Row CBS in the early 1970s. The offences, mainly between September 1972 and June 1973, involved Manning approaching boys to the front of the class, unzipping their trousers, and fondling their genitals. One victim was abused as late as June 1975. The four men, now in their sixties, gave victim impact statements at the sentencing hearing, describing fear, shame and long‑term emotional damage. Manning pleaded guilty to the first charge and admitted the facts of the prosecution case. He was sentenced to two years for the first count and an additional year for the fifth count, to be served consecutively. Manning left the Christian Brothers in 1977 and has since expressed remorse. The judge described his conduct as morally reprehensible and a severe breach of trust.
Evelyn Corrigan, 68, of Tallaght, was charged with possession of 325.7 g of cannabis for sale or supply. She pleaded guilty to possession but denied selling, claiming she grew the plants to make medicine for her pain. The court found no evidence of intent to distribute; a jury returned a not‑guilty verdict on the charge of possession for sale or supply. Judge Pauline Codd dismissed the charge under the Probation Act. Corrigan admitted the quantity but stated she had never intended to give it to anyone else. The trial included testimony that she used the cannabis to produce a CBD‑oil extract for her glaucoma, emphysema, asthma and arthritis. No prior convictions were recorded. The case ended with the jury acquitting her of the charge of possession for sale or supply.
Peredigha Amasuomo (21), of Griffth Halls of Residence, Griffth College, Dublin 8, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to three counts of money laundering at unknown locations within the state, two occurring on November 14, 2019, and the third on November 21, 2019. The charges were admitted, and Amasuomo entered a plea of guilty. Judge Melanie Greally sentenced Amasuomo to four months imprisonment, but suspended the sentence in its entirety on strict conditions. The court heard that three fraudulent payments were transferred from a bank in Puerto Rico into Amasuomo's bank account, with the total value of the funds transferred into the account being just over €6,000. Amasuomo claimed he had lost his ATM card, suggesting it was stolen and that his PIN code had been scraped onto it. The matter was adjourned for the purpose of considering the suspended sentence. Griffth Halls was also named as a defendant in the case, but no sentence was imposed at this procedural stage.
Wojciech Kazmierczak, 43, was sentenced to eleven years' imprisonment, with the final year suspended on strict conditions, for a violent robbery that took place on 24 August 2020 at Corn Exchange Place, Dublin. During the incident, he choked one escort until she was unconscious, then punched her again, and later punched a second escort who had been choked by the other accomplice. Both women were rendered unconscious, one was bound with duct tape and wrapped in a rug, and both sustained significant facial injuries. The robbery involved the theft of cash, handbags, phones and the removal of the women's phones by the accomplice. Kazmierczak was also found in possession of just under €400,000 of cannabis when arrested in September 2020, and he pleaded guilty to assault causing harm, two counts of robbery and possession of cannabis for sale or supply.
Patrick Paget, aged 33, was sentenced to six years' imprisonment for throwing petrol bombs at a family home in Ashlawn Park, Ballybrack, Co Dublin, on 3 August 2020. Two bombs were hurled at the house; one ignited outside, causing a small fire, while the other entered the house but failed to ignite. The couple inside awoke to a loud bang, saw flames, and the wife escaped over the flames while the husband stood on broken glass. Gardaí found blood between glass panels at the front door; a DNA profile matched Paget. He pleaded guilty to criminal damage and endangerment. The court noted he had 179 prior convictions, including for drug offences, and that a motive had not been established. Judge Melanie Greally described the act as pre‑meditated and sentenced Paget to six years, suspending the final year on strict conditions.
Kellie Walton, 39, pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to stealing cash worth €70,614 and property worth €34,961 from Virgin Media Television at Westgate Business Park, Ballymount, Dublin, between 1 January and 31 December 2019. She has no prior convictions and has a young family. Her lawyer, Fiona Murphy SC, requested a probation report. Judge Melanie Greally ordered a probation report, remanded Walton on continuing bail, and adjourned her sentencing to 1 December. The case of co‑accused John Murray, 40, was adjourned to an arraignment on 10 November.
Robert Lawless, 42, shared a home with his mother and brother when Gardaí searched it under a warrant. The search uncovered 65 separate cocaine deals and cash of €605 and €105. Lawless admitted responsibility for the drugs. During the raid, 18 callers attempted to buy cocaine. A month later, a second raid found more drugs. Lawless pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine worth €1,440 on 15 January 2020 and €1,960 on 16 February 2020, and had prior convictions for drug possession. Judge Melanie Greally, after hearing evidence, sentenced him to 18 months imprisonment for the January offence, suspending the entire term on strict conditions, and adjourned sentencing for the February offence to 21 July 2022. She ordered an updated probation report and noted that if a "resounding report" of engagement is produced, she might adopt a similar approach.
Giuseppe Diviccaro, 46, was sentenced to five years' imprisonment, with the final 18 months suspended, for acting as a front man in an international criminal organisation that used invoice‑redirect fraud to launder money. He admitted opening seven bank accounts in Ireland, most with legitimate Italian IDs but all using the same fraudulent utility bill and address. Over €200,000 was transferred into these accounts, about 70% of which was moved out quickly. Diviccaro pleaded guilty to contributing to the organisation's activities between 21 June 2018 and 17 July 2020, and to money‑laundering offences between 22 June 2018 and 6 April 2019. Gardaí seized €9,750 in cash and a mobile phone with photos of other ID cards at his home. The judge noted he was not the mastermind but his actions facilitated the criminal scheme, and he must leave the jurisdiction within 14 days of release and not return for 15 years.
Bo Yu, 38, was jailed for eight months after being caught masturbating in three different stores in Dundrum on several occasions in 2019. He pleaded guilty to public masturbation at House of Fraser on 27 and 30 November, and at Penneys and Marks & Spencer on 3 December. At the time of his arrest he was found with a sex toy, an unused condom and lubricants. The court noted that he was clearly aroused during the incidents and that shoppers were largely unaware of his conduct. Judge Melanie Greally sentenced him to 12 months' imprisonment, suspended the final four months for two years, and ordered him to engage with the Probation Service and undergo treatment for sex offenders. No prior convictions were recorded.
Maurice Walsh, 31, was sentenced to eight years in prison, with the final three years suspended, after pleading guilty to possessing €22,820 worth of heroin for sale or supply at Watkins Square, Dublin 8, on 20 August 2018. The drugs were found during a Garda surveillance operation that led to a search of his mother's home on the North Circular Road, Dublin 7. Garda Mark Eccles described how officers observed two men entering and leaving the property, then intercepted Walsh and discovered the heroin in various locations, including €10,000 in cash in his mother's bedroom. Walsh had five prior convictions and had previously served five years of a seven‑and‑a‑half‑year sentence for a similar offence. The judge noted his chronic drug addiction, the impact on his mother, and the fact that this was a repeat offence, and imposed the suspended sentence on the condition that he attend a residential drug rehabilitation programme upon release.
In a Health and Safety Authority prosecution, Telstar Investments LTD was fined €7,500 for exposing two staff members to asbestos fibres during the removal of unstable ceiling tiles in a courtyard area above its licensed premises. The director, Noel Murray, removed the tiles after a warning sticker was found and the tiles were later confirmed to contain brown asbestos. The company had a guilty plea and cooperated with the HSA, paying costs within four months. The court noted that the director acted without specialised equipment and that the removal was undertaken to prevent potential falls. The fine reflects the company's failure to ensure the safety, health and welfare of its employees in the removal and cleanup of asbestos‑laden debris. The case was heard in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
A 66‑year‑old man was jailed for three years after a jury found him guilty of sexually assaulting a 6‑year‑old girl and her 7‑year‑old sister between 2004 and 2009, and of exposing himself in August 2018. The man, whose identity is withheld to protect the victims, had pleaded not guilty at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. He claimed a mistaken phone call when the girls' parents confronted him after the elder sister saw him masturbating on a video call via Facebook Messenger in 2018. The court noted the children's ages, the man's lack of prior convictions, and his cooperation, but imposed a custodial sentence for the sexual assaults. The prosecution highlighted the victims' reports of profound impact, while the defence argued the offences were not at the highest level and that the man had no intention of repeating the behaviour. The judge placed the assaults at the middle to lower end of the sentencing range.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Alan Cloake, 47, pleaded guilty to impersonating an immigration officer and defrauding ten people of €71,000 between 2015 and 2017. Cloake, who used the aliases Michael Madden and Michael Walsh, convinced victims—Malawian and Filipino nationals working illegally—to pay him for a promised citizenship process. The money was spent on gambling and hotels. Cloake had no prior convictions and earned only about €371 a week from welfare during the period. He admitted to using the funds for betting, losing €70,678 in an online gambling account. The court ordered a probation report and adjourned the case for finalisation on 26 October, with the judge allowing time for Cloake to repay the victims.
Malik Boubir, 46, a father of seven from Liverpool, was sentenced to six years' imprisonment with the final three years suspended on strict conditions. He pleaded guilty to importing €79,648 worth of cannabis into Ireland via a van that had a hidden compartment behind the driver's seat. The van was seized at Dublin Port on 20 October 2020 after customs officers, who had confidential information about the vehicle, stopped and searched it. Boubir had 51 prior convictions in England, including drug possession with intent to supply. He claimed he was paid €2,600 to transport the drugs, that the van did not belong to him, and that he was following instructions from people in Ireland. Gardaí found two mobile phones in his possession showing he had been receiving communications from "certain individuals" in Ireland.
Keith McDonnell, 32, of Tallaght, Dublin, appeared before the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for sentencing. He pleaded guilty in April this year to burglary at St James's Road, Walkinstown, on October 14, 2013, and violent disorder at a Maxol garage on the Crumlin Road on February 3, 2014. Judge Elma Sheahan noted that McDonnell was on bail during the violent disorder incident and had 58 previous convictions. While acknowledging his guilty pleas, remorse, and addiction issues, the judge highlighted the seriousness of breaking into a family home with a hammer. Considering the 18 months already served and other charges on the indictments, Judge Sheahan sentenced McDonnell to 12 months imprisonment for the violent disorder and two and a half years imprisonment for the burglary. Both sentences were suspended in full for their respective durations. The conditions of the suspension include probation supervision and the completion of a residential drugs treatment programme. The court also noted that his co-accused received a three-year suspended sentence after pleading guilty.
Nikkita Brogan, a 24-year-old woman from Letterkenny, Co Donegal, appeared at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court regarding her role in a taxi hijacking. She pleaded guilty to the unlawful seizure of a vehicle at Rutland Grove, Crumlin, on May 6, 2019. Prosecution evidence, including dashcam footage, alleged that Brogan, seated in the back, released the driver's seatbelt to allow two men to drag the 60-year-old driver from the vehicle and assisted in reattaching the gearstick knob. The men, who have already been sentenced for robbery and assault, allegedly choked and punched the driver. Brogan admitted to unclicking the seatbelt but denied threatening the victim. Her defense counsel, Paul O'Carroll SC, noted that the case had been delayed by a procedural matter referred to the Court of Appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions to clarify the service of books of evidence. He also highlighted Brogan's 76 previous convictions, primarily for shoplifting, and her current three-month term for theft. Judge Melanie Greally observed that past leniency had not improved Brogan's conduct. The matter was adjourned until November 12 to allow a probation report to be prepared, with the balance of the plea in mitigation to be heard on that date.
Stephen Feery, 31, escaped Garda custody by crawling through a hospital bathroom vent while awaiting treatment for a broken arm. He had been taken to St James Hospital after a burglary at Dame House, where he stole electrical equipment. During the escape, he struck a Garda and was later rearrested. Feery pleaded guilty to burglary and the escape charge. He has 159 prior convictions, including theft, fraud, and traffic offences. The court heard that he was heavily addicted to crack cocaine and that his escape was driven by a desire for more drugs. Counsel highlighted his complex needs and the importance of psychiatric and psychological reports. Judge Melanie Greally adjourned sentencing to November 25 to allow these reports to be prepared and to consider residential rehabilitation and support for his mental wellbeing.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Conor Clarke, aged 29, pleaded guilty to unlawful seizure of a vehicle, attempted seizure of a vehicle, assault and making threats to kill or cause serious harm after an incident on Hazelhatch Road, Newcastle, Co Dublin, on 15 February 2019. The case began when a car overturned on the street and three men, including Clarke, emerged. Clarke punched a resident, John Daly, and later jumped into another man's car, leading to a struggle that was ended by Daly's intervention. A nurse who had stopped to help also witnessed the altercation and left the scene after fearing Clarke might pull her out of her car. Gardaí arrested Clarke, who was remanded in custody pending a final hearing scheduled for 1 November. The court considered psychological reports indicating severe depression and high anxiety, and a probation report was ordered. The hearing concluded with the judge adjourned the matter for finalisation.
In a case heard at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, Joseph Behan, aged 45, was convicted of robbery, attempted robbery, assault causing serious harm, assault causing harm, possession of a firearm and reckless discharging of a firearm after a raid on Mizzoni's Pizza in Edenmore Shopping Centre on New Year's Day 2019. The jury found that Behan entered the takeaway with a gun, demanded money while staff toasted the New Year, and when a staff member threw a champagne bottle at him, he fled but fired several shots into the kitchen. Two staff members were shot, one sustaining a through‑and‑through chest wound that put him at serious risk of death. Judge Martin Nolan sentenced Behan to 15 years' imprisonment for assault causing harm. Behan's appeal to the Court of Appeal was dismissed, with the court upholding the conviction and sentence.
In a 2016 incident on Belgard Road, Tallaght, Stephen Duffy, aged 28, struck a stranger who fell and suffered a brain injury requiring life‑saving surgery. Duffy left the scene, then returned to place the victim in the recovery position. CCTV footage captured the attack and his subsequent actions. The victim, who sustained a brain bleed and was in a coma for two weeks, later received €5,000 from Duffy. Duffy pleaded guilty to assault causing serious harm on the basis of recklessness, with no prior convictions. The court noted his remorse and the victim's recovery, including loss of smell and taste but regained mobility. Judge Melanie Greally sentenced Duffy to four years' imprisonment, fully suspended, with strict conditions and an additional €10,000 payment to the victim within two years.
A 42‑year‑old man, Vasile Plesca, withdrew his appeal against a three‑year jail term after being convicted of assault causing harm to his wife. The incident, which took place on 26 April 2017, involved Plesca striking his wife with a rolling pin in a jealous rage, forcing her to remove blood‑stained clothing and shower, and leaving her with bruises and marks. Video evidence recorded by the victim showed her screaming and pleading for help. Plesca denied strangling her and claimed he avoided hospital visits to protect his children. A psychological report noted an intellectual disability. Judge Karen O'Connor suspended the final year of a four‑year sentence, and Plesca had appealed to the Court of Appeal. Before proceedings began, Court President Justice George Birmingham allowed the withdrawal of the appeal, citing the seriousness of the offence and the importance of the appellant's awareness of sentencing options. Vasile Plesca pleaded guilty.
Claire Burke, aged 31, was sentenced by the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to a total of six years' imprisonment, with the final two years of the latter sentence suspended. The sentence is consecutive to a two‑year term for an assault in November 2018. In that assault, Burke stabbed a man in the wrist with scissors after he refused to return money she had taken from him. In June 2020, while on bail for that offence, she entered a garage in Clondalkin, produced a knife, and threatened an employee to hand over all the money in the till. She was found guilty of attempted robbery and the production of an article in the course of a dispute. The judge noted her history of drug addiction, homelessness and previous convictions, and stated that she had not shown the transformation her defence claimed. The court did not accept the argument that she had turned over a new leaf.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Philip Kavanagh, 34, was acquitted of assault causing harm to Garda Theresa Moore after a jury found no evidence that he had injured her. The jury, however, convicted him by a 10‑2 majority of common assault on Garda Conor Mohan, who had confronted him at his home following a disturbance. Kavanagh denied both offences. Garda Mohan described Kavanagh as drunk and aggressive, refusing entry and lashing out when restrained. Garda Moore reported that Kavanagh resisted restraint in a patrol car, causing her a blunt injury to the right hand, later confirmed as a fracture. Kavanagh claimed he was assaulted by Moore in the car, alleging a black eye and whiplash, but denied causing her injury. The case was adjourned for sentencing on 26 July.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, a 34‑year‑old unemployed father of six pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to his nine‑year‑old daughter between 8 and 11 July 2016. He admitted slapping her but denied using a broom handle or other sticks, claiming the broom was part of a Halloween costume. The court noted the girl's injuries—a five‑by‑ten‑centimetre bruise on her left arm and a dry scratch on her right arm—were inflicted by the father. The judge, after considering the case, deemed the injuries "lower end" of the scale for assault causing harm but stressed the aggravating factor of beating a child. He ordered a report to assess the father's suitability for community service, with a maximum of 240 hours in lieu of an 18‑month prison term, and adjourned finalisation to 8 November. The father expressed regret and hopes for reconciliation with his children.
Palesa Ntsulumbana, 24, a South African medical student, was jailed for two years after importing about three kilograms of methamphetamine worth €183,060 into Ireland. She travelled from South Africa via Dubai, was stopped at Dublin Airport on 13 December 2020, and was given a suitcase she believed contained clothing. Garda John Perillo reported that she had been offered roughly €2,000 to bring the suitcase and that she had no prior convictions. Ntsulumbana pleaded guilty to importing illegal drugs. Judge Melanie Greally described the case as an unusual set of circumstances, noting that Ntsulumbana was likely manipulated and perhaps unwittingly acted as a mule. She was sentenced to four years' imprisonment, with the final two years suspended on strict conditions, including leaving the country within 14 days of release and not returning for 20 years.
Anthony Keogh, 64, a former director of Keogh's Crisps and a farmer, admitted to growing 39 cannabis plants in his greenhouse without a licence, claiming it was a "gardening experiment" to explore medicinal benefits. The plants, valued at €7,800, were seized during a Garda search on 9 July 2020 after a suspected grow house was identified. Keogh, who had no prior convictions, pleaded guilty to unlawful possession and cultivation of cannabis. The court noted the plants were mostly seedlings and unlikely to enter drug circulation. Judge Melanie Greally described the case as unusual, proposed an eight‑month imprisonment sentence but deferred it to 4 October, requiring Keogh to post a bond, maintain good behaviour, and contribute €200 to the Father Peter McVerry Trust. If these conditions are met, she will discharge him under Section 100 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006.
In a trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, Phillip Kavanagh (34) pleaded not guilty to assault charges against Garda Theresa Moore and Garda Conor Mohan. The incident occurred on 7 January 2017 at a Focus Ireland housing complex. Kavanagh, described as drunk and without a top, allegedly resisted officers' entry and became aggressive. Garda Moore recounted that after Kavanagh was arrested and cuffed, she attempted to restrain him in a patrol car. Kavanagh reportedly lunged, striking her hand, causing a sprain, broken knuckles, and a fractured wrist. He claimed the officers "battered" him, while Garda Moore denied any injury caused by her. The case is set to continue before Judge Martin Nolan and a jury.
Ian Coughlan, 45, of Newcastle, Co Dublin, pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to four charges of possessing €159,250, believing or being reckless about whether it was proceeds of crime, from an Allied Irish Bank and a Bank of Ireland account between June and October 2016. Gardaí investigated a fraudulent payment of €39,251 from a Turkish aviation company that was redirected to a Ukrainian supplier; the company later discovered the fraud when the money was never received. A warrant was obtained to search Coughlan's home, and he was arrested on 17 May 2017. Further evidence linked a French plastics company that transferred €120,000 into his Bank of Ireland account after being instructed to change supplier bank details. Coughlan admitted that Nigerian men had asked him to use his account for business, offering him a 10% cut, but he never received it.
Kelle Elaine Do Rosario Oliveira, a 30‑year‑old Brazilian mother of three, was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for possession of cocaine for sale or supply. She had swallowed 112 capsules of cocaine before boarding a flight to Dublin on 11 October 2020. The drugs, valued at about €72,000, were seized at Dublin Airport after customs and excise officers noticed irregularities in her documentation. Oliveira admitted she had swallowed 90 capsules in Brazil the day before the flight and claimed she was instructed to go to a hotel to remove them, but never received further instructions. She cooperated with Gardaí during questioning and stated she had been promised just under €1,150 to transport the drugs. The judge, recognising her cooperation and foreign status, suspended the final 18 months of a three‑year sentence on the condition that she leave Ireland within seven days of release and not return for 20 years. Elaine Do Rosario Oliveira pleaded guilty.
Jonathan Dargan, a 50‑year‑old martial arts instructor, withdrew his appeal after the Court of Appeal warned that his case was not a 'one‑punch manslaughter'. Dargan had been convicted of the manslaughter of Patrick Mullally, a 56‑year‑old man celebrating his retirement, after a drunken altercation on Harold's Cross Road in March 2016. Dargan struck Mullally with a punch that shattered his jaw and caused a fatal brain injury. He also assaulted Mullally's friend, Shane Cunningham, who was injured. Dargan denied unlawful killing and claimed self‑defence, admitting he had "lashing out" but asserting he was in control. The trial judge, Justice Pauline Codd, imposed a six‑year sentence, suspending the final six months, citing the impulsive nature of the assault. The Court of Appeal's warning that the case was not a simple one‑punch manslaughter led Dargan's counsel to withdraw the appeal. No objection was raised by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Diego Andrade, a 24‑year‑old Bolivian national, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment, with the final six months suspended, for sexually assaulting a four‑year‑old boy who was asleep in bed with his mother at a party. Andrade was on bail for a separate adult sexual assault conviction and had previously served nine months for that offence. He was identified by a photograph taken by the boy's mother and was found to have child sexual abuse material on his phone. The judge noted the boy's extreme anxiety and the family's suffering, and imposed conditions requiring Andrade to leave Ireland within 14 days of release, to be supervised by the Probation Service, and to avoid unsupervised contact with children for 20 years. The sentence is to run consecutively with his existing custodial term. Diego Andrade pleaded guilty.
A 25‑year‑old Dublin man, formerly known as Ben Mooney and now Ben McCarthy, was sentenced to a three‑year suspended term after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography. He admitted to using the alias "Nicole Heffernon" to contact up to 15 teenage boys via Facebook, sending them explicit images and videos of themselves in underwear or naked, and also videos of the boys masturbating. The court found he had 4,000 images and 300 videos on a Samsung phone at his home. He had no prior convictions. Judge Melanie Greally noted his behaviour was exploitative and that he had been under a two‑year probation bond since 2019, during which he completed the "Safer Lives" programme and other treatment courses. The suspended sentence will be enforced if he fails to comply with probation conditions.
In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, the sentencing of former RTÉ producer Kieran Creaven, aged 58, for sexually assaulting and exploiting children was adjourned to 5 November 2021. Creaven, who remains in custody, appeared via video‑link. His defence solicitor, Lorcan Staines SC, requested the adjournment and an updated probation and welfare report, and the judge, Melanie Greally, granted the adjournment and remanded him on the same terms and conditions until the new date. Creaven had previously pleaded guilty to sexually exploiting three children in Ireland between 26 May and 10 July 2017, to sexually assaulting two children in the Philippines in October 2014, to exploiting a child via a Skype conversation in July 2017, and to several counts of possessing child pornography in Ireland, the Philippines, and England. The court heard evidence relating to videos and images from an SC card, a mobile phone, a disk, and a Skype conversation.
Robert Hedderman, 37, was jailed for 18 months after a burglary on Christmas Day 2016 in which he damaged furniture, electronic devices and urinated throughout the house. He was already on bail for that offence and was serving a three‑and‑a‑half‑year sentence for a 2016 burglary. Hedderman pleaded guilty to a 2019 burglary at an industrial building in Cookstown Court, Tallaght, where six laptops worth €9,000 were stolen. Blood on a broken window matched his DNA. He has 51 prior convictions, including 10 for burglary, robbery, criminal damage, knife possession and public order offences. The judge suspended the final 18 months of the new sentence, to run consecutively with the existing term, and imposed strict conditions. The case was heard in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Phillip McCabe, aged 22, was sentenced to five and a half years' imprisonment for two robberies committed on 3 March 2019. The first involved a Spanish woman who had just arrived from Barcelona; McCabe and an accomplice approached her at a bus stop, wrestled her iPhone, punched her, and fled with her phone and purse. The second robbery targeted a man with cerebral palsy on Malahide Road. McCabe and the same accomplice ambushed the man in a laneway, pepper‑sprayed his eyes, beat him, and stole his iPhone, threatening to stab him if he did not erase data. McCabe pleaded guilty, admitted probable involvement, and cited drug addiction as a motive. He had 112 prior convictions and had been in custody for several years. The court ordered the two sentences to run concurrently, giving an effective term of five and a half years.
John Fitzsimons, 58, of Whitethorn Park, Palmerstown, Dublin, pleaded guilty in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to failing to pay about €136,000 in VAT between May 2011 and May 2016 and to not filing VAT and income tax returns from 2001 to 2016. Revenue discovered that J Fitz Haulage Ltd, registered at Fitzsimons' home address, had ceased to exist in 1999 and that the VAT number on its invoices was void. Fitzsimons also operated under CGC Associates and M and G Haulage. A civil investigation notice was issued to him on 1 February 2016. After a district court warrant, Revenue found that over €800,000 had been paid into his personal bank account by Bunzl. Fitzsimons expressed remorse and claimed he did not know how to complete tax returns. Judge Martin Nolan, noting Fitzsimons' lack of prior convictions and his health, sentenced him to two years' imprisonment, describing the sentence as "extremely lenient".