Car thief fled through river after crashing €50k Mercedes

A man who drove a stolen Mercedes through a fence during a high-speed garda chase before wading through a river to avoid capture has been jailed for three years.

John Byrne, aged 28, of Stonebridge Avenue, Hartstown, Dublin, pleaded guilty to using a car without the owner’s consent and recklessly damaging it at the M3 motorway in Damastown on February 3, 2015.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard yesterday that a Mercedes worth over €50,000 was stolen in Charlemont estate off Griffith Avenue, Dublin at about 4.30am on February 3. A short time later, the car was spotted by gardaí travelling along the M3 motorway near the Navan Road and a pursuit was initiated.