‘Costly bottle of rum’ for Lidl

A district court judge has said convicting retail giant Lidl for serving alcohol to a minor would be like “using a hammer to swat a fly”.

Judge James O’Connor said he would strike out the matter after an offer of a €5,000 contribution to the court poor box by counsel Constance Cassidy on behalf of the retail chain.

Lidl was accused of the offence at its Listowel store in Co Kerry on April 24, 2015, following a Garda test operation. Ms Cassidy said it was only the second incident of its kind in the company’s 16-year history in Ireland.