Robber asks to be jailed to help him give up heroin

A robber has asked a judge in Dublin Circuit Criminal to jail him as he couldn’t give up heroin on the outside.

John O’Brien (aged 28), of Fernhill Court, Springfield, Tallaght pleaded guilty to robbing Mr Jamie Kenny of an iPod on December 17 last year as he waited for a Luas on Abbey Street in the city centre.

He also pleaded guilty to stealing a laptop, phone and wallet from an apartment on April 8, having been released on bail for the robbery offence the previous day.

O’Brien had 50 previous convictions, including theft, burglary, handling stolen property, criminal damange and public order offences. He is currently serving a 12-month sentence imposed in August.

Judge Tony Hunt said he would order a probation report before sentence, but defence counsel, Mr William Galvin BL, said his client wanted to be sentenced there and then.

Mr Galvin said O’Brien left school at 14 but worked in good jobs until he became addicted to heroin when 18 and was "out of his head on drink and drugs" when he robbed Mr Kenny.

He said he was on methadone in prison but struggled with his addiction when released and also found himself homeless at times.

"His parents are separated and have only ‘fragile’ accommodation," Mr Galvin said.

Judge Hunt imposed 18-month sentences on each offence, to run consecutively, but suspended the last 12 months for two years following his release on conditions.

Garda Michael Galligan told Ms Fiona McGowan BL, prosecuting, that Mr Kenny was listening to his iPod when O’Brien asked him for change for the Luas. Mr Kenny had none and O’Brien said if he didn’t give him the iPod, he would "f**king knife" him.

Garda Galligan subsequently saw CCTV footage of the crime and spotted O’Brien on the street on New Year’s Day. When approached and told abut the robbery, O’Brien ran away, but Garda Galligan caught and arrested him.

O’Brien accepted it was him in the CCTV footage but said he had no memory of the event. He stayed in custody until released on bail on April 7, 2007.

The garda said O’Brien had been a heroin, alcohol and methadone addict and would have spent most of his days incapacitated.

Garda Ciarán Whelan said he was approached by a burglary victim on Capel Street on April 8, the day after O’Brien was released on bail.

Mr Christian Fram had caught O’Brien taking his laptop and phone from his living room. He chased him out of the apartment down to the lobby, where O’Brien dropped the laptop. Mr Fram managed to grab O’Brien’s rucksack and negotiated an exchange for his phone. However he then realised O’Brien had his wallet.

While talking to gardaí, Mr Fram saw O’Brien on the street. He had two of his victim’s credit cards in his tracksuit pocket and told gardai where he’d dropped the others. The only property not recovered was the actual wallet and about €25.

O’Brien told gardaí that he had followed someone into the apartment building and found Mr Fram’s door unlocked. Judge Tony Hunt said that it was unfortunate that people cannot leave their front doors open. "But it’s unwise as there are people willing to help themselves to what’s on the other side," he said.

The judge congratulated Mr Fram on his courage and state of mind. "He couldn’t have known what he was confronting," he said.