Garda who carried out 'protracted and vicious assault' on former wife avoids jail

Trevor Bolger, 48, was given a three-month sentence, which the judge suspended in full on strict conditions

Trevor Bolger pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assaulting Margaret Loftus on October 25, 2012. Picture: Collins Courts

A former garda who was viciously assaulted by her garda husband found the criminal justice system to be “every bit as damaging” as the assault itself. 

Detective Garda Trevor Bolger today avoided jail when he was given a three month suspended sentence for a “protracted and vicious” assault that occurred in 2012.

The victim Margaret Loftus spoke afterwards of a prolonged process for a case that was before the courts on 58 occasions.

“Today marks the end of a very difficult, traumatic journey that has taken me 14 years and 58 court appearances to get to,” she said outside the criminal courts of justice building.

“Detective Garda Trevor Bolger viciously and violently assaulted me in a prolonged attack. By his own admission he is an abuser and perpetrator of domestic violence.” 

Victim Margaret Loftus pictured speaking to media outside Dublin circuit court..

Senior gardaí approached Ms Loftus today offering to stand with her when she addressed the media. She declined the offer. 

Ms Loftus left An Garda Síochána in 2022. Trevor Bolger has been suspended since he was charged with the offence.

On 28 April last, he pleaded guilty under Section 2 of the Non Fatal Offences Act to assaulting his wife in October 2012. 

The assault occurred in front of the couple’s two children when they were visiting her family's home in Co Mayo for a social occasion.

She made a complaint in 2018 after a long period in An Garda Síochána when she felt she was being ignored and considered a nuisance even though the assault was well known among her colleagues. 

A request for a transfer back to her native Co Mayo was initially granted and then denied. 

She had to wait a further length of time before she was finally transferred to Sligo rather than Mayo.

In 2019, after he had been interviewed and denied any allegation of assault, Bolger was promoted and given access to firearms. The firearm access was later withdraw when a story about it appeared in the press.

In 2020, Bolger was charged with a number of offences but those were dropped when he agreed to plead guilty before Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to the Section 2 charge in the weeks before the scheduled trial last April. 

The maximum penalty for a section 2 assault is six months imprisonment.

Today, Ms Loftus was critical of the manner in which the case was dealt, particularly the length of time it took to get to conviction and sentence. 

“My experience of the criminal courts of justice has been every bit as damaging as the abuse itself,” she said. 

“It has taken us all to our knees."

She also criticised serving members of An Garda Síochána who had appeared at an earlier sitting in support of the defendant.

“It was so disappointing to see members of An Garda Síochána openly support Trevor in court and by virtue of that support violence against women,” she said.

She was highly complimentary of the members of gardaí who investigated the assault after she made her complaint. 

“I would sincerely from the bottom of my heart like to thank the investigation team who got us here today,” she said.

In a statement, Women's Aid paid tribute to the courage and determination of Margaret Loftus which "stands in stark contrast to the actions of her abuser".

"It is very important for women experiencing domestic violence and abuse, where the perpetrator is a Garda, to feel they can safely and confidently reach out to the Gardaí for help," said Sarah Benson, chief executive of Women's Aid. 

"There needs to be clear guidelines on how the Gardaí deal with this situation, and these guidelines need to be easily accessible to the public so that survivors in these cases can be reassured and are not prevented from coming forward."

An Garda Síochána was contacted for comment.