Castlebar teens in thuggish reign of fear walk free
TWO of a five-member gang responsible for the ‘vast bulk’ of thuggery in the Taoiseach’s home town have been allowed to walk free from court – despite pleading guilty to assaulting a 14-yearold boy and an off-duty garda.
The decision to free them was labelled ‘an absolute joke’ by one of their victims.
The two are due back before the court in February charged with another alleged assault on a security guard.
Earlier this year the Irish Mail on Sunday spent a week in Castlebar, Co. Mayo, where the juvenile gang was wreaking havoc.
This newspaper spoke to victims of the gang, who told the MoS the five thugs were terrifying people in the town.
A joint policing committee meeting heard five youths were responsible for the ‘vast bulk’ of the juvenile crime in the town.
But despite the best efforts of gardaí to put an end to the teens’ reign of fear, the two were allowed to walk free last Monday after being given the benefit of the Probation Act at Westport Children’s Court.
This means the pair will have no convictions for the separate assault charges recorded against them.
One of the teen tearaways, who cannot be named because of his age, was charged with assaulting a 14-year-old in Castlebar in October 2012.
The teenager confronted the younger boy and demanded he hand over his mobile phone. He told the boy that if he did not hand over the phone, it would be forcefully taken from him.
He then took the youth’s phone and returned a moment later and hit the boy.
The thug’s solicitor, Linda Lenehan, told Judge Mary Devins that it was an ‘act of bravado’ and that her client accepted he should not have done it.
She said €100 was taken from the defendant’s pocket money over an extended period of time, a sum made available in the court to be given to the victim.
Judge Devins was told that the defendant has since moved in with foster parents in Roscommon and recent school reports showed ‘A grades’.
Judge Devins commented that he was ‘very bright’ and that social work reports described him as ‘pleasant’ and ‘a sociable person’.
Asked why he hit the youth, the defendant replied: ‘He threatened me with his father.’
Before applying the Probation Act, Judge Devins told the
‘It’s an absolute joke – I’m outraged’
defendant that it was important he was being educated and compared it to ‘getting a ticket to New York’. The defendant agreed to write a letter of apology to the victim.
The second gang member, who also cannot be named due to his age, was described by social work reports as ‘polite’, ‘friendly’ and ‘engaging’.
He was before the court for an unprovoked attack on an off-duty garda and another man.
Commenting on the attacks, Judge Devins said that the duo were both ‘products of very violent family backgrounds’, and she added that ‘children repeat what they see’. Ms Lenehen told the court that at the time the assaults took place the pair were homeless.
The second defendant is now in a residential facility finishing an addiction programme, and said he had already sent letters of apology to his victims.
They are also before the courts over an alleged assault on a security guard, but that case was adjourned to the New Year.
One victim of the rampaging duo told the MoS last night: ‘It’s an absolute joke that after all they’ve done that Judge Mary Devins gives them the Probation Act. I’m absolutely outraged.’
Earlier this year the nowretired garda who was assaulted by one of the two said: ‘They’re young little thugs.’
He, like most of the others we spoke to, was reluctant to be identified.
Of his own assault, he said: ‘This was purely random. My wife and I went for a walk and he jumped out in front of us and hit me in the eye. You can still see the scar.’
He pointed to a clear mark on his cheekbone.
He said: ‘ He wouldn’t know me. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, that is basically it. I was able to hold him down after I was attacked but he threatened me and told me he had a knife.’