Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Hijacker gets 20 months in prison for violent spree
Farage hits out at EU ‘bullies’
A HIJACKER who went on a violent rampage while trying to steal the cars of three neighbours was jailed yesterday.
Gerard Silcock, 36, pleaded guilty to a total of 13 offences arising out a series of incidents in Dunmurry, Co Antrim, last year.
At Belfast Crown Court he was jailed for a total of 20 months followed by 20 months on supervised licence.
The offences included attempted burglary with intent to steal, attempted hijacking, burgling a house, aggravated vehicle taking causing damage, resisting police and driving whilst unfit through drink or drugs.
The court heard at the time of the offences Silcock, of Mount Eagles Avenue, West Belfast, was the subject of a 10-year driving ban and was also on bail for other offences which he later received a six months sentence for.
The total damage caused by the car rampaging spree was almost £8,500.
A defence barrister said Silcock had been abusing drugs and alcohol since the age of 16 and had once been the victim of a punishment beating.
Belfast Recorder Judge David Mcfarland also disqualified the defendant from driving for 10 years. But he added: “We need to receive concrete proposals from the UK first.”
Mr Juncker said: “The 27 member states stand firm and united when it comes to Ireland. For us this is not an Irish issue, it is a European issue.”
But he was heckled by one MEP who shouted “it is a British issue”.
The European Parliament’s Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt also called for more details from the Prime Minister.
His European Parliament motion calls for an “association agreement” to deal with the future UK-EU relationship.
But it insists on a “binding interpretation role” for the European Court of Justice and rejects UK efforts to “cherry-pick” single market access for particular sectors, such as the financial services industry.
Mr Farage, a supporter of US President Donald Trump, said the UK should leave the EU without a transition deal and claimed a transatlantic trade deal could be struck “in 48 hours”.
He added: “Mrs May, we did not vote for a transition period, we voted to leave this organisation, we voted to leave the customs union, we voted to leave the single market.
“Please Mrs May, at this summit next week, do what Trump has done – stand strong against the European Commission, against the unelected bullies.”
STRASBOURG YESTERDAY