Addicts receive nine years for armed raids

Two chronic drug addicts who carried out a series of armed raids to raise funds for their habits have been jailed for a total of nine and half years by Judge Yvonne Murphy at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Colm Kane (aged 19), of Willow Vale, Ballybrack, was jailed for five years after he pleaded guilty to seven robberies of various Dublin shops, pubs and post offices, two thefts, possession for sale or supply of €1,400 worth in Ecstasy and cannabis resin and two road traffic offences between April 14, 2005 and May 23, 2006.

Ian Lawlor (aged 19), of Beachwood Lawns, Killiney, was jailed for four and a half years after he pleaded guilty to three robberies of a house and two shops, one theft and one charge of allowing himself to be carried in a stolen car between May 10, 2005 and May 23, 2006.

Kane raised a total of € 3,403 during the raids when he was usually armed with a knife. He acted as a getaway driver in another. He was on bail when he committed some of the offences and had 29 previous convictions.

Lawlor got away with €2,088 and also committed a number of the offences while on bail. He had 16 previous convictions.

Both Kane and Lawlor were identified through CCTV footage in most of the robberies and fully co-operated with the garda investigations.

Judge Murphy said that even though no staff were injured by the weapons used in the robberies and that both Kane and Lawlor claimed it was never their intention to hurt anyone, it was of little consequence to their victims.

She also took into consideration that Kane admitted to two of the crimes, which she said the gardaí may have found difficult to solve, while he was being questioned about a house robbery.

Judge Murphy took into account a psychiatric report that indicated Lawlor found it difficult to accept the death of his father and a subsequent change in his home situation. She accepted that this led him to living on the streets when he started taking drugs and committing these crimes.