Nenagh man jailed for stealing five pairs of designer sunglasses worth over €1,000

A Nenagh man who committed a spate of crimes, including theft, criminal damage and having drugs for sale has been jailed for a total of 10 months by Nenagh District Court.

Jason Fitzpatrick, 25, of 6 Ard Crúidín, Nenagh, pleaded at an earlier court to the theft of a man’s suit from the Coille Bheithe estate in Nenagh sometime between April 19 and May 1, 2023.

He also pleaded guilty to committing criminal damage to a vehicle at Nenagh Hospital on April 2, 2023.

Mr Fitzpatrick also pleaded guilty to theft of sunglasses from a vehicle in Coille Bheithe on April 4,and to theft at Aldi, Nenagh, on October 10, 2022.

He pleaded guilty to stealing prescription sunglasses from a car in Coille Bheithe between April 18 and April 19 and to stealing perfume and other items, including a dashcam, from the same estate on the same dates.

The defendant pleaded to stealing a car jack from a vehicle at Nenagh Hospital on April 25 and to stealing car jump leads and €10 from a vehicle in the same place on April 7.

He also pleaded to being in possession of cocaine at Tyone, Nenagh, and to having the drug for sale or supply.

He admitted to a number of offences of obtaining goods by using a stolen bank card at two shops on various dates.

Mr Fitzpatrick also pleaded guilty to a number of thefts from vehicles parked at the Abbey Court Hotel and to obtaining €147 worth of goods from Lidl, Nenagh, by using a stolen bank card on October 10, 2022.

He further pleaded to theft of items valued at €1,075 from a house at St Conlon’s Road, Nenagh, between April 24 and April 25, 2022.

He pleaded guilty to the theft of an item valued at €20 from DV8, Pearse Street, Nenagh, on February 8, 2023.

The case had been adjourned in June to the July 14 sitting of the court.

When it returned to court last Friday, Sgt Regina McCarthy told Judge Elizabeth MacGrath that Mr Fitzpatrick had 33 previous convictions, including for theft, drugs, road traffic and firearms, as well as 16 for public order offences.

She outlined to the court that the defendant had been in custody since April 21, 2023.

Mr Fitzpatrick’s solicitor, Elizabeth McKeever, told the court that her client had two children which had been taken into care and that he was in a new relationship and his partner had a baby while he was in custody and he had yet to see the child.

She said all the offences were based on addiction.

In relation to the charge of sale of supply of cocaine, Ms McKeever said that Mr Fitzpatrick had been selling to feed his own habit and the amount had been of low value.

“He is anxious to mend his ways and to have some future ahead of him,” said the solicitor.

She asked Judge MacGrath to suspend some part of any sentence she might impose.

Ms McKeever told the court that Mr Fitzpatrick intended moving out of Nenagh and living in Tipperary Town where his partner is from.

A relative of his partner had given him a guarantee of employment in Tipperary Town, she said.

Sentencing Mr Fitzpatrick, Judge MacGrath said he had a substantial amount of charges but noted they were addiction driven.

She jailed him for four months, backdated to April 21, for sale or supply of cocaine at Árd Crúidín, Nenagh on April 12, 2022.

Judge MacGrath sentenced him to a further four months, consecutive, for criminal damage to a vehicle at Abbey Court Lodges, Nenagh, on February 13, 2023, and to eight months for theft of five pairs of sunglasses valued at €1,075 at St Conlon’s Road, Nenagh, on April 24/ 25, 2022. However, she suspended the final six months of that sentence on condition Mr Fitzpatrick enter a bond of €250 for two years and comply with the Probation Service.

She took all the other charges into account.

Recognizance was set in Mr Fitzpatrick’s own bond of 500, with an independent surety of €1,000, €500 of which was to be lodged in cash and to be approved by the court.

Judge MacGrath said that she was sentencing him to a total of 16 months, but was suspending six months of that sentence.