Jail for man after petrol bomb bid to free girl

A young man threw a petrol bomb at a house in a desperate effort to force his girlfriend’s parents to let her out at night “in a Rapunzel-type endeavour”.

Jonathan Lonergan, aged 21, of 40 Ardcullen, Hollyhill, Cork, pleaded guilty to a charge causing criminal damage to a window and attempted arson of the house.

He was jailed for four years with half of the sentence suspended and backdated to January when he was admitted into custody.