By Aoife Nic Ardghail and Jessica Magee

A 42-year-old Dublin man has been jailed for five years for child pornography offences and for abusing and sexually exploiting a young boy.

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of his victim, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of sexually assaulting a boy, sexual exploitation of a boy and producing child pornography between 2011 and 2013.

He further pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography for distribution within in the State on July 11, 2006 and to possessing child porn images, videos, texts and documents on computer media on ….read more

A Dublin man who was thrown out of a pub by a gang of men after he went in armed with two kitchen knifes has been jailed for six months.

Jason Farrell (26) had two large knives went he went into The Auld Triangle pub in Dublin city centre and approached a group of men.

Garda Sergeant Ken Houlahan told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that on February 2, 2018, he was in an unmarked patrol car when he saw a melee outside the pub on Gardiner Street, Dublin.

He said he saw a group of men forcefully ejecting Farrell from the pub. He ….read more

A man who deliberately reversed his car into a garda patrol car to avoid arrest has been jailed.

John Langfield (35) drove at 200 km/h on the M7 motorway on a wet March night, weaving in and out between lanes.

The high-speed chase, which began in a housing estate in Kill, Co Kildare, ultimately came to an end when Langfield performed a handbrake turn on the Nangor Road, in Clondalkin, Dublin, struck the same patrol car a second time and mounted a traffic island.

Langfield was arrested at the scene and apologised to gardaí in a subsequent interview for his behaviour.

Langfield of O’Hogan ….read more

A violent mugger who was stopped when he ran from his victim and into a nearby crime scene for a different crime has been jailed for two years.

Nathan Benson (21) punched and head-butted Cormac Doyle before running off with his iPhone.

Garda Derek Tubridy told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that the attack took place at around midnight on July 2, 2016 when Mr Doyle was standing outside the “District 8” nightclub on Francis Street, Dublin.

The victim ran after Benson and caught up with him and grabbed him. Benson turned around and again head-butted Mr Doyle and punched him up to five ….read more

A man who kicked his former partner in the face during an attack and told her that “tonight was her execution” has been jailed for five years.

Barry O’Donoghue (38) of Mourne Road, Drimnagh, Dublin, was convicted by a jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court of assault causing harm and threat to kill or cause serious harm at his address between October 20 and 21, 2016.

Judge Elma Sheahan sentenced O’Donoghue to five and a half years imprisonment for the threat to kill and three years imprisonment for the assault. She said both sentences will run concurrently with each other.

Judge Sheahan suspended ….read more

A South African grandmother who illegally trafficked a nine-year-old child into Ireland was hoping that a romantic relationship might develop with the child’s father, a court has heard.

The 54-year-old woman, who today received a partly suspended two and a half year sentence, was unaware that the child had been abducted by the father from the mother’s custody during a visit. Nothing can be published which may identify the child.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard the woman flew into Ireland with the child and posed as the child’s mother’s at immigration control under directions of the father in the UK via WhatsApp.

She ….read more

A catering student has received a suspended prison sentence for beating up a passerby who tried to break up a row between him and his girlfriend.

The row between Emmet Prizeman (22) and his then partner began inside a nightclub on Harcourt Street in Dublin city where they had been drinking.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that the dispute spilled out onto the street where Stephen Merchant attempted to intervene.

CCTV footage captured Prizeman punching Mr Merchant once and the victim falling quickly to the ground. Prizeman then kicked the victim twice while he was on the ground, Aideen Collard BL, prosecuting, told ….read more

A convicted rapist who held a knife to a woman’s throat and sexually assaulted her while she was unconscious has been jailed for six years.

Marius Purcil (39) of Woodbrook Hall, Carpenterstown, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to sexual assault and assault causing harm at a holistic treatment centre in Dublin city centre on January 21, 2017.

Judge Martin Nolan sentenced him to five years imprisonment for the count of sexual assault and three years imprisonment for the count of assault causing harm, both of which will run consecutively with each other. He suspended the final two years of ….read more

A Dublin man who stole €500 of mass donations from the sacristy of a church has received a suspended prison sentence.

Justin Murray (40) of Moatview Court, Coolock, ran away from the church when a parishioner saw what he was doing.

Gardaí later identified Murray as the thief from CCTV in the area and found his bicycle which had a sticker with “Justin Murray” on it discarded on the church grounds.

At Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today Judge Elma Sheahan noted that Murray had made efforts to rehabilitate from drug addiction and was now drug free.

She suspended a 12-month prison sentence on condition ….read more

(Pictured: Frank Kamara. Credit: Collins)

A man who told his supervisor he emailed him a video of a baby being raped to highlight the dangers of child sexual exploitation has avoided being jailed.

Frank Kamara (29) with an address at Loreto Park, Rathfarnham, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of child pornography on January 17, 2018.

Garda Joanne Grogan told Gerardine Small BL, prosecuting, that Kamara was working as a member of a cleaning crew at a shopping centre in Dublin city.

On the date of the offence he sent a video to his supervisor who viewed the video for ….read more