Porter remanded in arson-suicide attempt

A hospital porter who, in an attempt to commit suicide, set fire to the county council home he shared with his partner and four children, has been remanded on bail pending sentence at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Judge Katherine Delahunt heard that Daniel Long (aged 43), now living in Grange Abbey Crescent, Donaghmede, had a drinking problem at the time. She didn’t accept that a report in court indicating that he had tested negative for alcohol since January 2007 was sufficient to prove he no longer abused drink.