13-year-old linked to 60% of Rathfarnham and Tallaght burglaries

A 13-year-old boy who had been suspected of committing 60% of burglaries in Rathfarnham and Tallaght, despite being on the educational level of a pupil in senior infants’ class, has been committed to a detention school for two years.

The boy, who was out of school and has learning difficulties and behavioural problems, had been convicted at the Dublin Children’s Court for a string of burglary offences committed over a five-month period, which ended in March when he was remanded in custody.

In most of the burglaries on which he has been convicted, the court has heard that none of the stolen property has been recovered, including €5,000 worth of jewellery, which was taken when he broke into a house in Crumlin.

Over recent months the court has been told that the boy had been involved in a wave of crimes "from Ballyhaunis to Blackrock", which originally started in July 2002, when he was 11 years old.

In total, he has been taken into garda custody for questioning 37 times. This year he had been questioned 11 times in connection with 80 offences, mostly burglaries, which have been investigated by gardaí from 13 stations.

The court had heard that gardai had conducted a computerised crime trend analysis on the teenager’s pattern of offences, which deducted that he was linked to the majority of burglaries in Tallaght and Rathfarnham from the start of the year until the end of March.

The boy had not been attending school and his educational level was once described as being that of a child in senior infants’ class. The court had also heard that the boy did not have a social worker but social services had him at the "top of the priority list".

In many of the recent court appearances, he had become volatile and had shouted threats at gardaí. Once he charged at a garda and threatened him in the courtroom.

Defence solicitor Ms Sarah Molloy told Judge Thomas Fitzpatrick that the case had been protracted by the efforts made to find a suitable facility for the teenager.

Judge Fitzpatrick was told that a placement in a special children’s detention school in Co Tipperary was available.

The boy, whose father was present, had come to court with his "bags packed", Judge Fitzpatrick was told, and is willing to stay in the school.

Mr Jim McGuirk, of the Special Residential Services Board, told Judge Fitzpatrick that the school is eager to work with the boy as soon as possible. But, he added, the child would have to give a commitment and also show that he is willing to work if they are to help him, Mr McGuirk said.

Judge Fitzpatrick agreed to finalise the case and ordered a term of two years committing the boy to the detention school.

At an earlier hearing, the court heard how the boy had broken into a house in Knocklyon Grove in Templeogue, in the early hours of January 12 last. He stole a wedding ring and some bracelets, worth €800, which are still missing.

On March 12, he smashed his way into a house Nutgrove Avenue, in Rathfarnham but was disturbed by the homeowner. He made off with €70, which was not recovered.

He had also admitted attacking a garda at the courthouse. He had been subject of a routine search prior to being put in a cell, when he lashed out and punched the garda in his stomach and then spat at him.

During another burglary, which he admitted, at St Patrick’s Road in Crumlin, he made off with an eternity ring worth €3,000, a solitaire ring worth to the value of €2,000 ring, a mobile phone worth €200 and a digital camera worth €350.

He had been arrested for that burglary after his fingerprints were recovered at the scene of the crime. However, none of the stolen property has since been recovered.

On October 17 last year, he managed to gain entry into the staff room of a McDonalds restaurant in Tallaght where he stole a mobile phone.

He had denied but was convicted of another burglary, which took place on February 10, in which he broke into a house and made off with a laptop computer. He was convicted after the court heard he had been identified by the homeowner, who had spotted him leaving her house with her laptop.

He had also denied, but found guilty, of trespassing in the staff area of Dunnes Stores, in the Nutgrove Shopping Centre, from which he took small amount of cash.

He was convicted after the judge heard that he had been identified by the store manager as being in an area restricted to staff only. The manager had also told the court that, when stopped, the boy emptied his pockets of the stolen items in her presence.

He was also found guilty of a break-in at St Mark’s Junior School in Tallaght, which he had also denied. After his conviction on this offence he told the presiding judge: "Judge, there’ll be no school there when I get out. I’ll burn it down."

At a preliminary hearing in May to determine whether he understood the difference between a crime as opposed to an act of mischief, a garda witness had estimated that the boy had been behind 60% of burglaries in the Rathfarnham and Tallaght areas, from the start of the year until the end of March.

Outlining the boy’s criminal history detective Sergeant Tom Doyle, attached to Rathfarnham Station, had said that the teenager had been involved in a wave of crimes "from Ballyhaunis to Blackrock" which started in July 2002, when he was 11-years-old.

Det-Sgt Doyle had also said:

The boy has been arrested and brought into Garda custody for questioning 37 times, mostly for burglaries, which have been investigated by gardai from 13 stations, Det-Sgt Doyle said.

The boy had also been questioned 11 times so far this year in connection with 80 incidents of burglary, criminal damage and public order offences.

On May 5 last year, he had been given a two year suspended sentence, by a court in Co Roscommon for eight offences: two burglaries, an attempted burglary, assault, criminal damage and breach of the peace. The sentence was suspended on condition that he was to be of good behaviour.

Det-Sgt Doyle had also said he had conducted a computerised trend analysis of crimes in the Tallaght and Rathfarnham areas. He said this study concluded that the boy was responsible for 60 per cent of burglaries there.

Whenever the boy was remanded in custody burglaries in these areas dropped by that percentage, he also said.

"The type of offences have evolved from breach of the peace and public order offences into crimes of large scale burglary. Elderly people have suffered and have lost a lot of property."

He has been given so many chances in court and has demonstrated contempt for court orders and the probation services that has been working tirelessly to help him," Det-Sgt said.

At that hearing, the court heard that the boy is on the educational level of a child in senior infants’ class.

However the court ruled that he had an understanding of what a crime was. In June he pleaded guilty to the bulk of charges and was also convicted on other burglaries, which he had denied.

He was then remanded in custody until yesterday in the National Remand and Assessment Unit in Finglas, Dublin, pending efforts to find a place for him in a suitable unit.