Money pressures led to assault
Donal Connaughton told the men he was the devil, that he would rip their heads off, and that they would be lucky to get out of his farm alive, Portlaoise Circuit Court heard yesterday when the 55-year-old was before the court for sentencing.
Conor Devally, defending, said Connaughton had built up a substantial pig farm, but due to events locally and internationally he was under severe pressure from a number of financial institutions when the incident happened in 2010.
Mr Devally said Connaugh-ton was frantically trying to deal with the financial crisis and had taken to abusing alcohol. He has since sought treatment and has not taken a drink in three years.
Yesterday’s hearing was the fifth occasion his case was scheduled for sentencing following earlier adjournments after Connaughton claimed there was jury misconduct.
Sentencing was initially set for last February, but Connaughton dismissed his legal team and alleged jury misconduct. Two Garda probes have since taken place, after which the DPP ruled there should be no prosecution.
Sentencing was rescheduled for Roscommon in June and then for Tullamore last month, but did not proceed to allow Garda investigations into the allegations take place. The matter was adjourned at Portlaoise Circuit Court on Monday for sentencing yesterday.
Connaughton, from Elfeet, Newtowncashel, Co Longford, was found guilty before Christmas of two counts of false imprisonment, two charges of threatening to cause serious harm, one count of assault, and two of criminal damage.
The six-day trial in December heard how Connaughton ordered the two repo men to strip and get into a pen with an agitated boar during a row which lasted almost half an hour. The two men refused.
Patrick Mulvey and Justin Tighe, employees of the repossession company Assets Security in Dún Laoghaire, said they feared for their lives after going to JAC Pigs Ltd in Longford to repossess items on behalf of GE Money.
The two men were assaulted and were made to kneel and pray before they were allowed leave on foot from his farmyard.
Connaughton’s wife Margaret, aged 52, was found not guilty on six charges when she appeared before Longford Circuit Court in December.
A farm worker, Romanian man Marcin Danci, was earlier this year sentenced to concurrent suspended terms of two years in prison and ordered that he carry out 200 hours of community service after pleading guilty to threatening to kill or seriously harm the two repo men.
Judge Hunt said it appeared to him that Danci had acted under the general influence or specific direction of his employer.
The court was told yesterday that Connaughton had six previous convictions for forgery in relation to loans drawn down from ACC in 1994. He had pleaded guilty and had received a suspended sentence, but yesterday’s court was told that he was facilitated by an employee of the bank, who had informed him it would be easier to receive the loans by using different names.
The court was told yesterday that there was never a threat of violence from Connaughton until the incident involving the two repo men.
Judge Hunt said Connaughton had done little to help his case during the court proceedings.
He said he clearly had to consider a custodial sentence, given the previous conviction and also the manner in which he had approached this case.
However, having heard another hour of evidence at the end of a long day yesterday, he required time to reach a decision and yesterday adjourned the case for sentencing to Nov 8.
