Man stole woman’s bag as he helped to fix puncture

A woman who got a puncture in her car in Cork City was doubly unfortunate as one of the men she asked to come to her assistance stole her handbag.

Patrick McAuliffe, formerly of 127 Ardcullen, Hollyhill, Cork, and more recently living in hostels, was jailed yesterday for a total of 12 months for this and other thefts in the city.

Judge John King also imposed a six-month jail term to be suspended for a period of two years on the accused man’s release from the one-year jail term.

Insp Adrian Gamble said that on June 10, a bus driver flagged down the motorist in Cork City and indicated that she may have a flat tyre.

McAuliffe was passing at the time and the motorist asked him to assist her. He loosened the nuts on the particular wheel but he said he was in a hurry and left her at this stage. Another man then went over to assist her.

When the motorist had her wheel changed and was ready to go, she went looking for her handbag to offer the man some money for the assistance he had given her. She then found that her bag had been stolen.

CCTV showed McAuliffe had gone off with her bag, with a loss to the owner of €60 in cash.

Insp Gamble outlined another incident where CCTV showed McAuliffe sat behind and targeting a woman at Costa Coffee in Merchants Quay and stealing her bag.

On June 30, 2015, he entered Brown Thomas and stole a €250 Gant jacket which was recovered.

He also attempted to steal a purse on September 24 at the English Market. He placed his hand in handbag and was restrained by the woman’s husband and held at the scene until gardaí arrived.

Insp Gamble said the accused had 253 previous convictions, the majority of them theft-related. “He is a career criminal,” he said.

“How come I don’t have money for cigarettes, I am no career criminal,” McAuliffe said.

Diarmuid Kelleher, solicitor, said the defendant was not a career criminal. He said he had a major accident while working on a scaffolding and there was a spiral after that where he became addicted to painkillers and alcohol, and as if he had not enough problems he developed a gambling addiction.