Man high on 'cocktail of drugs and alcohol' sentenced to six years for 'barbaric' attack

A man who was high on “a cocktail of drugs and alcohol” has been sentenced to six years in prison for what a judge described as a “barbaric” attack on an older male on his way home from a pub.

Liam O’Neill (25) of Kildonan Drive, Finglas pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to robbing Paul Mullarkey at Grattan Parade, Drumcondra on November 29 last year.

The court heard that O’Neill had consumed a mixture of heroin, cocaine and alcohol on the day of the offence.

Garda Kevin Bambury told the court that the 58-year-old victim was returning home from visiting a pub when O'Neill approached him.

He told the court that CCTV footage showed that O’Neill began to jostle Mr Mullarkey and held something into his stomach and throat while threatening to stab him. The victim subsequently discovered the object was a sharp piece of a small tree branch.

Garda Bambury said O’Neill then proceeded to kick his victim and punch him in the head. After Mr Mullarkey fell to the ground, O’Neill lay on top of him and bit parts of his ear and nose.

The sustained attack lasted about six minutes during which time it also appeared that O’Neill stamped on his victim’s head and torso before taking €50 from his wallet.

The court heard that O’Neill was arrested later the same evening after he was seen behaving erratically outside the Mater Hospital

Blood found on his clothing was subsequently matched to the DNA of his victim.

Mr Mullarkey suffered cuts and scratches to his head, body and hips and needed to attend an infectious diseases clinic in the Mater due to his bite injuries.

In a victim impact statement, Mr Mullarkey said he feared for his life if he didn’t give his attacker money and now was nervous of walking alone.

The court heard O’Neill had 82 previous convictions for a range of crimes including violent behaviour and possession of a knife and had served a four-year jail term for a previous robbery.

Judge Martin Nolan said the crime was a serious robbery “by any standard or description” which was carried out while on a “cocktail of drugs and alcohol”.

The judge said O’Neill had punched, kicked and humiliated his victim, while he described the action of biting Mr Mullarkey as “visceral and barbaric”.

“He could not withstand the attack and it was profoundly distressing,” the judge said.

Judge Nolan said O’Neill’s past record, which demonstrated a certain propensity for violence, was “disturbing” but he accepted that he would not have committed the robbery if he was not on drugs.

“I think he had good intentions and he is not a sociopath,” the judge added.

Judge Nolan said the headline jail term for the robbery should be up to nine years but he imposed a prison sentence of six years after taking O’Neill’s guilty plea and genuine remorse into account.

Pieter Le Vert BL for O’Neill acknowledged his client’s offence was “a savage attack”.

He said O’Neill had been sickened when he viewed the CCTV footage of the assault and had admitted that it would “turn your stomach” as he had great respect for older people as he had been reared by his grandparents.

Mr Le Vert said he had written an apology to Mr Mullarkey in which he said it was something he would never have done if sober.

He said O’Neill had shown some level of rehabilitation after his previous period in jail as he had remained drug free for around two years, had received a President’s award and had a job as a warehouse operative.

Mr Le Vert said his client had fallen back into drug abuse after his partner had suffered a miscarriage but that his remorse and regret were “heartfelt”.

While his offence required a serious sentence, Mr Le Vert pleaded that he was a man “who should not be written off entirely”.

The sentence was backdated to December 17 last when O’Neill was first placed in custody.