A DEFENDANT who pleaded guilty to a long list of charges, mainly thefts from city businesses, had 100 previous convictions and this could not be ignored no matter how difficult his background was, Judge Valerie Corcoran said when sentencing him to 16 months in prison.
At Galway District Court, Declan Breen, currently in custody and with a previous address given as Tuam, pleaded guilty to numerous charges, mostly thefts from various businesses throughout Galway city.
They include snatching €100 from a restaurant till, but he was chased by staff and the money recovered. He and a lady companion wined and dined in Harry’s Bar, Bohermore and fled leaving a bill of €72.50.
A valuable bottle of Coco Chanel perfume was stolen from one pharmacy and perfume valued at €177 from another, and yet another perfume to the value of €95 was taken.
The Court was told that a female companion appeared to accompany Breen on many of his escapades but that no co-accused was prosecuted.
Breen and a female companion were stopped by security at the Eyre Square Shopping Centre and when told they were not welcome there, became very abusive to staff.
Among Breen’s 100 previous convictions are 35 for theft, two for robbery, four for handling stolen goods and seven for burglary.
Sean Acton solr (defending ) pleaded his client had a very difficult background and had been living “from pillar to post” from a young age. He had developed a heroin addiction but was trying to deal with this and was now on a very low methadone dose.
He acknowledged that his 100 previous convictions spoke for itself but to his credit he was not a violent man, as his record attested.
Judge Corcoran said she had huge sympathy for the defendant but she could not ignore his record. There are lots of businesses out of pocket because of him, but she hoped he sees the light when he gets out of prison.
A 16-month prison sentence was imposed, the Judge stating that she could have given him the maximum of two years, but took his guilty pleas on all charges and his difficult background into account.
This article is funded by Comisiún na Meán.
