Man, 22, who stole two phones in the Garavogue will do community service

A ROMANIAN national who was jailed for six months in the district court for stealing two mobile phones had the sentence set aside in favour of a probation report with a view to a community service order at Monday’s Sligo Circuit Court.

Twenty-two-year-old Nicolae Muntean,with an address in Carrick-on-Shannon pleaded guilty at the district court to stealing two mobile phones belonging to Shauna North and Aileen Fitzpatrick from the Garavogue Bar on August 11, 2019.

Muntean was told to come to court with compensation of €700 but that sitting was told the phones among others had been hid in a toilet roll holder and a cistern. On hearing this, Judge Kevin Kilrane believed this was too serious and he imposed a jail sentence of six months. That court was told the phones were hidden to be brought away at a later date. Judge Kilrane described Muntean’s activities as being like a rat moving things from A to B.

Sergeant Derek Butler told last Monday’s district court appeal that Shauna North was on the dance floor when she felt something puling at her bag on her shoulder.

It was the defendant.

She hit him across the head, and he was later charged with theft.

Over the next few days, a substantial amount of property was recovered from the toilets in the Garvogue Bar.

The phones were hidden in the toilet roll holder and in the cisterns to be collected at a later date.

Muntean was taken to Ballymote Garda Station and the DPP decided to charge him with the theft of two mobile phones and remaining charges were struck out.

The phones belonging to both injured parties were recovered from the men’s toilets.

He pleaded guilty and was jailed for six months. The defendant had 16 previous convictions with a number for begging. Defence counsel Keith O’Grady instructed by Gerry McGovern, solicitor, said a lot of the previous convictions were for begging.

And while there was some concern about crime among certain members of his community, he was not a ringleader and there were other people further up the food chain, on the night in question. He was given the chance to get compensation but in the intervening period “the district court judge changed his mind.” It was a “complicated case” and there was also a co-accused.

Mr O’Grady asked the court not to impose an immediate sentence as he did not have any major background in theft. The defendant was only 22 and had previous convictions for begging.

The defendant now lived in Carrick-on-Shannon and was at the end of the road.

Judge Francis Comerford said he would consider a community service order but would need a probation report to do this. The judge said the defendant was only charged with two thefts and he was “not the ringleader”. But he was going to have to make a choice.

The judge said he was putting back the case for the preparation of a probation report. If suitable, he would serve a community service order of 120 hours in lieu of six months in jail.

Meanwhile, these charges were hanging over him and if he got in trouble in the interim it could affect his community service order.