Louth man jailed for attempted robbery

A young Louth man has been sentenced to three years with two suspended at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for his role in attempting to rob a foreign national in Dublin.

Seamus Drumm (aged 21) initially claimed he grabbed the victim in a headlock to protect him from his more violent co-accused but entered a guilty plea before his trial date.

Drumm, of Sonas, Ballymascanlon, Dundalk, pleaded guilty to attempting to rob Egyptian national, Mr Hamada Gadalla, at Castlewood Avenue, Rathmines on February 26, 2008. Drumm has 16 previous convictions for theft, assault, criminal damage and public order offences.

His co-accused, Alan Jackson (aged 23) of Shanid Road, Harold’s Cross, received four years with two suspended for his role as main attacker in the attempted robbery and further consecutive sentences for armed robbery committed on bail.

Jackson had approached Mr Gadalla seeking directions to Crumlin before demanding his phone and wallet.

Detective Garda John McCarthy told Mr Dominic McGinn SC, prosecuting, that he and a colleague spotted what they first thought was a fight between three men while patrolling the Rathmines area after 11pm that night.

Det Gda McCarthy said as he moved closer to the scene he saw Jackson standing over Mr Gadalla with a broken bottle and Drumm on the ground with his arms around the victim’s neck.

The detective garda told Mr McGinn that Drumm initially claimed he only got involved in the struggle to keep the peace between Jackson and the injured party.

Det Gda McCarthy agreed with Mr Michael Bowman BL, defending, that his client had been easily led by Jackson, who started the fight.

Mr Bowman submitted to Judge Patricia Ryan that his client had spent most of his late teenage years “drifting” between living on the street, in care regimes and homeless shelters.

He submitted Drumm was now free of drugs but attends regular gambling counselling sessions and recently suffered a bereavement.

Mr Bowman said though his client has another matter pending in court, he wishes to study engineering, has been employed in landscaping and construction and has not come to adverse garda attention since 2008.