Lithuanian man accused of rape fails to make court appearance

A bench warrant has been issued for a Lithuanian national who failed to appear at the Central Criminal Court for trial for allegedly raping a Galway woman and who is also wanted for a serious offence in his home country.

Mr Justice Paul Carney has also directed the release of the accused’s partner who acted as his bailsperson and whose arrest he had also ordered on Friday when the 38-year-old man failed to appear for the start of his trial.

She was arrested last night and held overnight before being brought before Mr Justice Carney who was told by Detective Sergeant Tony Reidy that he believed she knew where the accused was at present.

"I have my suspicions but there is insufficient evidence to keep her in custody," Mr Justice Carney said.

A jury had been sworn in last week for the trial of the man who pleaded not guilty to orally raping the woman in Galway on November 28, 2005 and the hearing was due to start on Friday last.

He was remanded on continuing bail for the rape trial but was then arrested at the door of the court-room in the Round Hall of the Four Courts on foot of a European arrest warrant for an alleged offence in Lithuania and taken away in handcuffs.

The man was later released on bail by the High Court pending hearing of the extradition matter but his defence counsel in the rape case, Ms Isobel Kennedy SC (with Mr Michael Bowman BL), complained to Mr Justice Carney that jury members might have observed his public arrest and handcuffing in the Round Hall.

Prosecuting counsel, Mr Michael Durack SC (with Ms Caroline Biggs BL), said that the gardaí attached to the Four Courts gardaí had ensured that the jurors who were sworn-in for the trial had been sequestered in the jury room out of sight of the arrest until the man was taken away to the Bridewell Garda Station.

Mr Justice Carney agreed that in the interests of safety he would discharge the jury when it came to court on Friday and have a new jury sworn in today but when the accused failed to appear he issued bench warrants for the arrest of the man and his partner.

Det Sgt Reidy told the court today that he arrested the woman on Sunday on foot of this warrant and she was held overnight in Mill Street Garda Station before being brought to the Court.

He said he found the accused’s car "secluded away" from public view about 50 metres from his home in Galway and she had arrived at her house within 90 seconds of him calling her on the phone, claiming she was at the shops but that no shops existed that close to the house.

Det Sgt Reidy told defence counsel, Mr Bowman (Mr Michael Bowman BL) it was his "intuition" and that of the gardaí that she knew where her partner was but agreed she wasn’t asked about the "hidden car".

He said he hadn’t gone to her earlier than he did because"I didn’t think it appropriate to go cap in hand" to the house. He also agreed that the house had not been placed under surveillance.

Det Sgt Reidy said arrangements were being made to check the bank accounts of both the accused and his partner to see if money had been paid out to him.

The accused’s partner told Mr Bowman she had posted €4,000 bail for him some 18 months ago and that she last saw him on Tuesday last week. She was on medication to help her sleep due to stress arising out of the case.

She said he was gone from the house when she woke up on Wednesday morning and she assumed he had left in his car to got to Dublin for his trial but she became aware on Friday in a phonecall from his solicitor that he hadn’t appeared in court on Friday.

She told Mr Bowman her partner never said he wasn’t going to appear for his trial and hadn’t asked her for money. She said she had unsuccessfully tried to telephone him since then being told he hadn’t come to court and she didn’t know where he was at present.