A SEVENTEEN-year-old who helped steal 3,000 eggs to use on Halloween was given a wake-up call he needed when he spent two nights in St Patrick’s Institute for Young Offenders.
The young person, who cannot be named for legal reasons, received the sentence after he failed to appear before the Children’s Court after his legal representatives mixed up the dates. He was appealing the sentence at last week’s sitting of Ballina Circuit Court where it heard that in the week before Halloween in 2007 and 2008, a number of youths entered Anderson’s Egg Factory in Ballina and stole a large number of eggs on each occasion.
Garda Adrian Kearins said that on both occasions the door was kicked in causing €300 worth of damage and that in 2008, 3,000 eggs were stolen. He explained that four to five cars were used to take the eggs and the defendant was arrested on October 30, 2008 where he confessed to taking the eggs.
Sergeant James Murphy explained that on April 18, 2009 he was on duty in Crossmolina when he came across youths drinking. He said that the defendant resisted being searched and when he was dealing with another individual, he lunged at him at tried to headbutt him. Sgt Murphy added that he found a forged driving licence with the defendant’s photo on it with a wrong name and age.
Under questioning from Ms Áine Boyle, BL for the defendant, Sgt Murphy said that the two nights he spent in St Pat’s was ‘maybe the wake-up call he needed’. He said that when the youth - who turns 18 next month - was in Crossmolina, he was part of a group who all came to garda attention, but they have since broken up.
Ms Boyle said her client was diagnosed with ADHD and had a troubled youth. She added that since last September he has been living in Galway and his brother was looking after him. He was looking to sit his Leaving Cert was willing to attend an alcohol addiction counsellor.
When asked by Judge Raymond Groarke if he had stopped drinking, he replied ‘not really’ to which the judge said that maybe it would be better sending him away. Judge Groarke told him that if he though St Pat’s wasn’t nice, it was nothing compared to the next place he could go to and warned the defendant that he could arrange for him to be sent away for a long spell. However, he adjourned the matter until 2011 to see how he was behaving and wanted to hear he was no longer drinking and a report from the addiction counsellor.
