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Tag Archives: Clare crime

Clare man jailed for ‘opportunistic’ rape of student

A YOUNG man who “opportunistically” raped a university student friend after creeping into her bed in the middle of the night has been jailed for four and a half years. The now 23-year-old Clare man was found guilty by a jury of one count of raping the young woman at an address in Dublin on May 23, 2017 following a Central Criminal Court trial last July. He has no previous convictions. The woman, now aged 25, told the court that after the attack she lost many university friends, with a lot of people saying she was lying. She said many of her male friends urged her not to go to gardaí telling her that she was “over-reacting”. The court heard the man now accepts the guilty verdict and a letter of apology was handed up to court. The court heard the woman’s two male friends, including the defendant, spent the night in her apartment after watching a movie and she …

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Clare woman’s significant losses from WhatsApp scam

GARDAI have warned people to be vigilant around text message and email communication after a woman in Clare was scammed out of a significant amount of money. Clare crime prevention officer Sergeant Triona Brooks said, “During the week a lady was at home when she received a text message via WhatsApp from a person purporting to be her daughter. “The text said that she had broken her phone and needed a replacement. This person then requested money to be transferred online and attached a link. “The victim, a trusting individual did not question this at the time and clicked on the link and provided her banking details.” A sum of €550 was taken from the account of the victim in four instalments, €150 x 3 and €100 x 1 before another attempt to take €100 was declined by the lady’s bank. “This lady only realised the extent of this fraud the following day on speaking with her daughter by telephone …

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Clare shop owner assaulted during early hours break-in

GARDAI are investigating a break-in to a shop and dwelling in an east Clare village in which the owner was assaulted. At 2am on Friday last, November 4, four males broke into a shop in Whitegate by forcing windows to the rear of the shop and gaining entry to the dwelling area. The male owner was assaulted during this break-in and received injuries. The intruders made their getaway in the owner’s car which was later recovered in Whitegate. This was a very traumatic incident for the owners of the shop. Gardaí in Killaloe are appealing to anyone who may have any information in relation to this incident to contact them at Killaloe Garda Station on 061 620540 or on the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111.

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Fire Service review after crew is attacked in line of duty in Ennis

CLARE County Fire and Rescue is reviewing its procedures for responding to calls following a recent escalation in anti-social behaviour in one area of Ennis. On Saturday night, firefighters and Gardaí attended the scene of a bonfire in the Cloughleigh area of the town and were fortunate to escape uninjured after they came under attack from stone-throwing youths. While dealing with the incident, stones and other missiles were thrown at personnel and their vehicles. The officer’s side window in one fire appliance was smashed while the vehicle’s windscreen was also damaged and will have to be replaced. A fire officer, who was in the appliance at the time, escaped injury. The fire appliance sustained other damage also and as a result has had to be taken out of service until repairs are completed. Other firefighters were struck by an array of missiles including rocks, bottles and sticks but no injuries were reported. Personnel extinguished the fire and retreated from the …

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Clare feud figure admits petrol bomb and firearm charges

A Clare man alleged to have been a “central figure” in a violent feud has admitted throwing a petrol bomb and discharging a firearm at a family home in Ennis. Amid a heavy garda presence at Ennis circuit court this week, Martin Mongans (34), a married father of eight with an address at College Grove, Ennis, pleaded guilty to a charge of endangerment contrary to section 13 of the Non Fatal Offences Against The Person Act. The charge against Mongans relates to an attack on a house at 25 Pearse Avenue, Cloughleigh, Ennis on November 22, 2021. The charge states Mongans intentionally or recklessly engaged in conduct – throwing a petrol bomb and the reckless discharge of a firearm – that created a substantial risk of death or serious harm. At a bail hearing at Ennis circuit court in July, detective sergeant, John Casey said husband and wife, John and Kelly O’Loughlin and seven children were in the house at …

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Gardai investigate house fire in Ennis

Gardaí in Ennis are investigating the circumstances of house fire that occurred overnight. The alarm was raised shortly after midnight when emergency services received a report of a property on fire at John Paul Avenue in the Cloughleigh area of the town. Units of Clare County Fire and Rescue Service from Ennis station responded to the incident along with Gardaí and National Ambulance Service paramedics. One arrival, fire crews found the downstairs sitting room area well alight. It’s understood there was no one in the house at the time while Gardaí carried out inquiries in an effort to confirm the whereabouts of the owners but it’s believed they were away at the time. This was the third house fire in the wider Cloughleigh area in recent months following previous incidents at Gordon Drive in April and Childers Road in June. Gardaí are now investigating the circumstances of this latest blaze which is thought to be suspicious. The scene will be …

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Man attacked woman in her home a month before killing another

A MAN kicked in the door of woman’s bedroom and assaulted her just over a month before murdering another woman in Ennis, a court has heard. Patrick Ballard (35) is serving a life sentence for the murder of mother of two Sharon Bennett (29) in the market area of Ennis on January 28, 2021. Ballard, with former addresses at the Ashford Court hotel, Ennis, appeared before Ennis district this week to be sentenced for offences he committed in the town on December 23, 2020. He pleaded guilty to two charges of criminal damage and one charge of assaulting a woman, all relating to offences at a house in Park Avenue, Clonroad, Ennis. The court heard Ballard has 140 previous convictions including four for assault and nine for criminal damage. Judge Mary Larkin said the accused’s criminal record has to be considered “quite significant”. Of the assault Ballard committed in December 2020, Judge Larkin said, “This woman was attacked in her …

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Three months’ prison for obstructing gardai in drugs bust

A CLARE man with a “history of significant involvement in the drugs trade” has received a three-month prison sentence. At Ennis District Court, Judge Mary Larkin imposed the sentence on Martin O’Brien (41) for obstructing a garda during a search of house in Sixmilebridge last year. O’Brien, a father of six with an address at the Bungalow, Wood Road, Kilrush, pleaded not guilty to obstruction and another charge arising from a money-laundering related offence. Both charges relate to a garda search of a house in Sixmilebridge on February 11, 2021. The court heard members of the Clare garda divisional drugs unit, supported by the armed support unit, executed a warrant at the property. O’Brien told gardaí he was present at the house to buy a car for his daughter. After a hearing of the case, Judge Larkin said she was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt O’Brien had obstructed a garda during the exercise of his duty. Judge Larkin said she was …

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