Jailed for stealing alcohol from Louth retailers
A 22 year old local man who was involved in a series of incidents where alcohol was stolen from retailers in Dundalk and Drogheda was sentenced to a total of eight months at Dundalk District Court last week.
The court heard John Keenan with an address at St. Joseph's Homeless Aid, North Strand Drogheda and a number of others were involved in an altercation outside Londis on the Castletown Road, Dundalk on September 29th 2019, during which a security guard received a number of punches and a flower display was also damaged.
In April the same year he stole vodka and gin from Tesco Metro and Dunnes Stores, Scotchall, Drogheda and a knife was found concealed in his underwear when he was searched at Drogheda Garda Station.
Two months later, he was found with another person interfering with a car and two days afterwards was found trespassing after he entered a vacant property.
The Defence solicitor said his client has a release date in June 2024, having recently been sentenced to six years in Dundalk Circuit Court with the final two and a half years suspended, which was backdated to November last year.
The solicitor stressed that the bulk of the matters occurred when his client was only recently an adult in the eyes of the court and when he was labouring under an addiction and found himself homeless.
He added that John Keenan had a difficult childhood but he has taken positive steps since going into custody and has never presented as well in court.
Judge Eirinn McKiernan imposed sentences totalling eight months for three offences and marked the rest of the 20 charges before her, taken into consideration.