Man convicted after failing to pay €400 into fund

A payment of €400 to the Garda Benevolent Fund could have spared a 41-year-old man his first conviction for assaulting gardaí but it emerged yesterday in court the money was never paid.

This resulted in Krzystof Kwatowski being convicted of assaulting a member of An Garda Síochána and fined €400 and being put on a peace bond in respect of two other counts of assaulting gardaí that were taken into consideration. Inspector Gary McPolin said yesterday that if €400 had been paid to the Garda Benevolent Fund, the judge had indicated that the accused would give him the benefit of a dismissal under the Probation of Offenders Act on the charge of assault and all other charges would be taken into consideration.

The €400 was not paid to the Garda Benevolent Fund, Insp McPolin said. Judge Mary Dorgan fined the accused €400 on the charge of assaulting Garda Patrick O’Sullivan and put him on a 12-month probation bond in respect of the other charges.

Kwatowski, of 24 Oakbrook, Castlelake, Carrigtwohill, Co Cork, made no appearance in Cork District Court yesterday.

Gardaí went to investigate a domestic incident after 10.30pm on January 20, 2018, at Elmvale, Wilton, Cork. The defendant, who was drunk, approached gardaí and he became aggressive. He lunged at gardaí and spat at them and struggled with them to prevent himself being arrested. The charges against Kwatowski were of assaulting Garda Kellie Faul-Kelleher, Garda Patrick O’Sullivan and Garda Denis Coleman.