Two years for burglar who left ID behind in house

A reformed heroin addict who was arrested after he left his wallet and identification in a house he had just burgled has been jailed for two years.

Stephen McCullagh (aged 30) of Rutland Avenue, Crumlin, was caught with a stolen motorbike when gardaí arrived at his home to bring him to the station. He denied that the bike was his and said he was going to return it to the owner if a reward was offered.

McCullagh pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to trespass and attempted theft and handling stolen property on March 14 and 21, 2008.

Judge Patrick McCartan had adjourned the case “with great reluctance” last July to give McCullagh a chance to prove he has made efforts to come off drugs.

He noted the absence of urine analysis reports in court saying: “The onus was put on (McCullagh) to bring proof of his efforts...He’s brought nothing.”

Garda Ryan Shields told Mr Roughan Banim BL, prosecuting that McCullagh is currently serving a seven-month sentence for traffic offences which were pending against him before his last appearance in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

McCullagh told the judge that he pleaded guilty to the traffic offences which occurred in October 2008 but said he was disputing a further burglary charge in the district court at present.

Garda Shields denied he knew of McCullagh making any complaint when Mr Luigi Rea BL, defending, asked if he was aware that his client believed he’d being “victimised” by gardaí after reporting an alleged assault by a garda.

Garda Brian Shiggins told Mr Banim that the house owner in the March 2008 burglary had left her ground floor bedroom window open and went into the kitchen. When she returned she discovered McCullagh in her room “going through her things”.

She screamed and he jumped out the window but he left his wallet containing his ID behind.

Gda Shiggins said that McCullagh had 25 previous convictions, three of which were for burglary.

He agreed with Mr Rea that it was never McCullagh’s intention to come into contact with the victim.

Mr Rea said that McCullagh started dabbling in heroin when he was 13 years old which later turned into an addiction. He said that from 1992 to 1999 the drug “had a huge grip on him”.

He managed to stay off drugs for six years but relapsed into addiction in 2005 when his previous relationship ended.

Mr Rea said McCullagh’s current partner was helping him get off drugs again.