The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Post Office raiders get 7 years jail
TWO drug addicts who carried out an armed robbery at Waterville Post Office in August 2016 have been sentenced to seven years in prison.
Marcus O’Rourke (38) of Rathanane Kilcummin, Killarney, and Brian O’Sullivan (32) of Coolies, Muckross, Killarney, were sentenced at Tralee Circuit Criminal Court on Monday.
Both men had pleaded guilty to robbing the post office which they burst into brandishing what appeared to be a firearm and an iron bar.
They fled with €4,000 and led gardaí on a high speed car chase across Iveragh, at one point ramming a squad car as they tried to escape.
TWO drug addicts who carried out an armed robbery at Waterville Post Office in August 2016 have been sentenced to nine years in prison.
Marcus O’Rourke (38) of Rathanane Kilcummin, Killarney and Brian O’Sullivan (32) of Coolies, Muckross, Killarney were sentenced at Tralee Circuit Criminal Court on Monday.
Both men had pleaded guilty to the robbery of postmistress Lisa O’Reilly Foran “of cash to an unknown amount” at the Post Office in Waterville on August 3, 2016.
They also admitted having a firearm “or imitation firearm” with intent to commit a robbery.
Both men had further admitted concealing themselves and then suddenly driving at a stationary garda car – creating a substantial risk of death or serious harm to detective gardaí Christopher Manton and Celine Ryle at Kill, Kilgobnet, Killarney. They also admitted damaging the garda car.
Judge Tom O’Donnell sentenced both men to nine years in prison for the post office robbery with the final two years suspended.
The pair –who were described in court as chronic drug addicts – were also each sentenced to three years on drugs matters with the nine year sentences for the post office incident to start once the drug sentences have been served.
The sentences were backdated to August 3, 2016 when the men were taken into custody.
An estimated €4,000 in cash was taken in the robbery and it was never recovered.
The gun was also never recovered. The defendants claim that the gun used in the robbery was a replica firearm but as it has never been found, the court heard it remains unclear whether or not it was a real gun.
In summing up the evidence, Judge O’Donnell said gardaí had trawled hundreds of hours of CCTV footage in a bid to trace the men’s movements before and after the robbery.
The CCTV footage showed a Ford Ka used by O’Rouke and O’Sullivan passing the post office several times before a cash delivery was made to it.
Shortly after the delivery was made the balaclava wearing pair burst into the post office, one brandishing what appeared to be a gun and the second wielding an iron bar.
They were unable to access the room containing the post office safe and stole whatever cash was available before fleeing the scene.
As the robbery was taking place the post mistress happened to be on the phone to An Post headquarters and managed to say she was in trouble. She also pushed an alarm bell.
After the robbers fled, a high speed chase ensued with the robbers using small roads off the main Ring of Kerry road in a bid to evade gardaí
The Ka used in the robbery was found burnt out a short time after the robbery.
Gardaí had converged from throughout the Kerry Division, and in the course of the pursuit one garda car was deliberately rammed by a Mazda getaway car that had been bought by the robbers the night before the post office raid. Two detectives were injured in the collision.
“It is abundantly clear the events of the day have had a profound effect on the post mistress and her family,” the judge said. She had worked in what was a family post office serving the rural community for 25 years.
“Her confidence and her independence have been shaken and undermined,” he said.
The community, the gardaí, the public and An Post had helped her and it was hoped that with continued support matters would continue to improve, the judge said.
The community, the garda, the public and An Post had helped her and it was hoped that with continued support matters would continue to improve, the judge said.
Both men have been in custody since August 2016 and were now drug free, the court was told and continued care was to be provided to them in that regard at the request of their counsels Anthony Sammon SC and Richard Liston.
Three years were handed down to O’Sullivan for sale and supply of a stash of Xanax tablets in a wooded area in Muckross Killarney in March 2015. O’Rourke was also given a three year sentence for sale or supply of heroin in January 2016 in the Brandon car park in Tralee.