Clare man jailed for late-night firebomb attack 'on a house full of children'

The court heard that the row started because the mother in the house didn’t like the way the defendant looked at her and her husband remonstrated him about it

The court heard the offence had occurred during a suspended sentence that Martin Mongans was serving.

A judge has jailed an Ennis man for four years and 10 months for a firebomb attack “on a house full of children” in 2021.

At Ennis Circuit Court, Judge Francis Comerford has imposed the four-year and 10 month prison term on Martin Mongans (35) for the reckless endangerment offence when firing a shotgun and throwing a petrol bomb at the O’Loughlin home at 25 Pearse Avenue, Cloughleigh, Ennis, just after midnight on November 22, 2021.

Imposing sentence, Judge Comerford said that Mr Mongans of College Grove, Ennis, had firebombed a house and used a shotgun on a house where very young children were present. Judge Comerford said Mr Mongans’s “planned and premeditated attack on a house full of children” merits a heavy prison sentence in order to deter others carrying out such attacks.

Judge Comerford said that no one suffered any physical injuries from the attack but the attack “did put eight children at risk”. The judge said that Mr Mongans had entered a late plea of guilty to the offence which, he said, had occurred during a suspended sentence that Mr Mongans was serving.

Suellen Keenan (33) of Ardarra, Portroe, Co. Tipperary, had prior knowledge of the planned attack and has pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the crime. Asked about the connection between the two, Detective Sergeant John Casey told the court that the two are "brother-in-law/sister-in-law and they have a child together also”.

Garda testimony on incident

In evidence, Det. Sgt Casey told the sentencing hearing that there were seven O’Loughlin children in the house on November 22, 2021, along with a 17-year-old teenager who was a young brother of houseowner and father to the seven, John O’Loughlin. Det. Casey said that the ages of the O’Loughlin children at the time were 11, nine, seven, six, five, three and one baby.

Det. Casey said that all the children were asleep and their mother, Kelly-Anne O’Loughlin, was upstairs while Mr O’Loughlin was downstairs watching Netflix shortly after midnight when a number of individuals pulled up outside the house and launched their attack on the house.

Det. Sgt Casey said that initially John O’Loughlin saw Martin Mongans outside in possession of a pickaxe swiping at the front door and glass panel. Det. Sgt Casey said that Mr O’Loughlin would have known Mr Mongans for a number of years and saw him go back to the edge of the driveway and throw a petrol bomb towards the house hitting a living room window with the petrol bomb that partially ignited on a roller shutter.

Det. Casey said that father of seven told him he saw Martin Mongans returning to a car where he retrieved a shotgun and fired a shot towards the house. The detective said that Mr Mongans - who has 14 previous convictions - was accompanied by two other individuals, all three wearing masks, who fled the scene.

The detective said that the entire incident lasted just one-and-a-half minutes and the cost of the damage to the house came to €5,000. Det. Casey said that two other unused petrol bombs were recovered from the scene.

Asked what was the background to the dispute by State counsel, Lorcan Connolly BL, Det. Casey said that Mr Mongans encountered Mr O’Loughlin’s wife in Ennis town centre and she didn’t like the way he looked at her and Mr O’Loughlin made a phone call to Mr Mongans to remonstrate about that.

'This man tried to kill us'

He agreed with counsel for Mr Mongans, Brian McInerney SC, that there was some suggestion by Mr O'Loughlin that the two had a bare knuckle fight in relation to this but it never took place.

In his victim impact statement read out in court, John O’Loughlin said that “since this night I don’t feel safe anymore and I am in fear for my life and my family’s life”. In her victim impact statement, Kelly Anne O’Loughlin said that this attack occurred on a school night “and I believed this man tried to kill us”.

The two O'Loughlins were in court for the sentencing hearing and Judge Comerford remanded Ms Keenan on bail for sentence to Wednesday.