Man found with knife in bloody bath in West Cork house convicted of assault

Defendant was volatile and aggressive with gardaí and told them deep cut to his arm was self-inflicted, court told

Defendant pleaded guilty to assault causing harm, obstruction, resisting arrest, criminal damage and possession of a knife. File picture: Dan Linehan

A Donegal man who was discovered sitting in a bath of bloody water with a knife has been convicted of assault causing harm.

Sergeant Tom Mulcahy told Skibbereen District Court that gardaí received a call from a concerned neighbour in Newbridge Park, Skibbereen, at 7.10pm on April 25, 2025. Gardaí attended the address to carry out a welfare check on a woman who was reported to be in a distressed state.

When they arrived at the property, there was no response when they knocked on the front door and they opened the unlocked door and entered the building. The court heard there was broken glass on the floor and the ground floor was in disarray, with items thrown around.

The officers could hear noises coming from the upstairs bathroom. On entering the bathroom, they discovered a distressed woman sitting on the toilet and a naked man lying in bath of water “diluted with blood”. 

The man — identified as 35-year-old Robert O’Connor from Glencar Scotch, Letterkenny, Co Donegal — was holding a large breadknife over his head and threatened gardaí. O’Connor was described as volatile and aggressive and had to be pepper sprayed, at which point he dropped the knife into the bath.

When O’Connor got out of the bath, he had a deep cut to his left arm, which he said was self-inflicted and he was arrested and an ambulance was called.

The court also heard that on August 8, 2025, at 1.15 am, a report was received of an assault at Newbridge Park in Skibbereen. 

When gardaí arrived at the address, the same woman was standing outside the house “bleeding from the nose with a wounded left eye”. 

Accused in highly intoxicated state

Gardaí were told O’Connor had caused damage inside the property and when they went inside found him lying on the couch in a highly intoxicated state. 

O’Connor was aggressive and “lashed out” at gardaí. It was alleged O’Connor had assaulted the woman and also caused damage to a chest of draws and a mobile phone.

O’Connor pleaded guilty to assault causing harm, obstruction, resisting arrest, criminal damage and possession of a knife. The court was told he had 12 previous convictions, including one for damaging property and 10 for public order offences.

Defence solicitor Flor Murphy said O’Connor had been out on bail since the August incident and had come down from Donegal to attend court appearances. He said O’Connor lived with his mother and came to West Cork to work in the fishing industry. 

Mr Murphy said O’Connor had addiction issues with alcohol and drugs and had borderline personality disorder and ADHD.

Mr Murphy said O’Connor was undergoing treatment and had been sober for two months and realises “he has huge issues”. 

Judge Joanne Carroll said it was a pity O’Connor did not go for treatment “before all this”. 

The judge said she noted his guilty plea and had also read a victim impact statement which outlined the “serious trauma” caused to the injured party, including black eyes and fractured rib. 

She said: “He’s a strong man who inflicted as much pain and suffering on a female as he could.” 

For assault causing harm, he was sentenced to nine months in prison. For possession of a knife, and the two obstruction charges, he was sentenced to six months on each count, all to run concurrently. The criminal damage charge was taken into consideration. Recognisance for appeal was set at €500 on O’Connor’s own bond.

This article is funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme