Laois teenager in court over car thefts

A boy who was placed in Oberstown Detention Centre wrote a letter to a judge promising not to reoffend. 

The boy (15) was brought before Portlaoise District Court for finalisation of his case having spent two nights in Oberstown.

Judge Andrew Cody said he had seen a probation report, a psychological report, a letter from a sports coach and a letter from a peace commissioner. He also read a letter from the boy. 

Judge Cody said he had read the material and the letter from the boy, who had said he was sorry for what he had done and “so sorry to all the people that got their cars robbed” as he “begged” for one last chance. 

“I have never been as scared in my whole life,” the boy wrote of his time in Oberstown. 

“All I want to do, Judge, is go home to my family,” he wrote.  

Andrew Dunne BL said the boy began getting into trouble about a year and a half earlier.

Judge Cody noted the school had found him “polite, quiet, well mannered and respectful” but he asked “what happens after 8 at night? He turns into a different person.” 

Mr Dunne said his client had been diagnosed with dyslexia and was engaging with CAMHS in relation to hyperactivity.  

“This is a young man who drastically changed in the last year and a half,” said Mr Dunne. He said the boy was in need of help from “a multitude of services”.

Judge Cody noted the defendant had told his probation officer that he didn’t take drugs and then he had tested positive for drugs. 

Mr Dunne said his client was now at the stage where he is admitting to everything including using a THC vape. He asked that the boy be allowed to get the help that he needs at home rather than in detention. 

Mr Dunne said the boy's parents were in court and they had suffered due to comments on social media even though the boy has never been named in court reports. “They are now having to suffer publicly as a family,” he said. 

Judge Cody said he was not putting any of this on the boy’s parents. He said he was satisfied that the parents are ”good and decent people and have done their utmost to get” the boy “to change his ways, but they have been unable to do so.”  

Garda Sergeant JJ Kirby described the boy’s parents as “inherently decent people” during the sitting of Portlaoise District Court. 

Judge Cody said his duty was to protect the public and he feared for motorists who might come across the accused. He said in three years on the bench he had only sent one juvenile to detention. 

Judge Cody said the defendant had pleaded guilty to a number of offences which he read in chronological order. 

He said the accused had damaged a car at the Midlands Regional Hospital Portlaoise by crashing it into a barrier on December 15, 2023. He is also charged with stealing a wallet from SS Peter and Paul’s Church grounds and deception at Junction 17 to the value of €24.50 and another for €6.50,  deception at Lidl with a loss of €100. Between January 6 and 24, 2024 he was accused of damaging a car at Portlaoise Train Station. On January 20 that year he was accused of the unlawful taking and criminal damage of a car at Portlaoise Hospital. On February 7 he was accused of taking a car at Dara Park,  Newbridge, Kildare and on February 10 he damaged a car at Portlarlington. On February 16 he took a car from Newbridge and on February 27 he damaged two cars in Portlaoise. On  June 17, 2024 he took a car from the Abbeyleix Road,Portlaoise.  On April 10, 2025 the boy was in a stolen car and made off without payment for fuel at a filling station on the Carlow Road in Abbeyleix. 

Judge Cody said the boy pleaded guilty to a number of offences in October of 2024.  

“Since that date this court, and his parents, have done everything that we can to try to get (the boy) to mend his ways and not to continue to offend in the manner in which he has, unfortunately we have been unsuccessful in this regard,” said Judge Cody. 

He said the boy “has continued to commit very serious crimes and expose others to danger and for this reason bail was revoked two days ago”. 

Judge Cody said the boy was guilty of an “extremely serious crime spree” between mid December 2023 and the end of February 2024. “These offences involve the thefts of cars for what is commonly called joyriding. The offences were occurring every few days in the towns of Portlaoise, Newbridge and Portarlington,” he said. 

He said despite strict bail conditions, the offending continued. “He has continued to breach his curfew and has continued to associate with four or five other individuals who form the core of this gang which had been involved in car thefts in the counties of Laois and Kildare over the past 18 months,”  said Judge Cody. 

He said “six weeks ago when the gardai applied to revoke his bail and he himself gave evidence in court and claimed that he was now reformed, he wouldn't associate with the negative peers anymore and he wouldn't commit any further offences.”  

“Unfortunately, such an assurance from him appears to be meaningless. He said in court is I swear | will abide by all my conditions, and I will not associate with the others. I will stay off Tik-Tok and I will stay out of trouble,” Judge Cody recalled. 

Judge Cody said he would  take into account the fact that the boy had no previous convictions and was associating with a negative peer group, but he said the boy was central to that peer group, and was not being led by them.

“It is clear when you look at the cars that were stolen in these cases there were Japanese imports, without an immobiliser and none were expensive cars and many eight to 10 years old,” said Judge Cody. 

He said it was also clear that some belonged to hospital staff and that the offences caused a huge amount of material damage and no compensation was available. He said the boy had shown little remorse or insight into his crimes.

Judge Cody said he had no option but to sentence the boy to detention in Oberstown. 

“Detention is the last resort, but I am satisfied this court, and his parents have exhausted all other possibilities,” said Judge Cody. 

“This court on arriving at its decision does not in any way seek retribution but the court must be cognisant that the sentence would act as a deterrent,” said Judge Cody. 

He said “it must be made clear to others that the type of offending involved here will not be tolerated by society and will be met with sentences like that which I propose to impose today.”

He sentenced the boy to six months in detention in respect of the unlawful taking of a car in Kildare in February 2024 and disqualified him from driving for five years. He sentenced him to a further one month concurrent for a second car theft.  Judge Cody took the remainder of the charges, except the two most recent into consideration. He adjourned those two charges to December 11 and warned the teen that he would sentence him to nine months detention on those charges if he continued to commit crimes. 

He said with a quarter off the sentence for good behaviour the teen should be out by early September. 

“I am going to give you September, October and November to prove yourself,” Judge Cody said. He granted legal aid and said he would not grant bail in case of appeal.

The boy (15) was brought before Portlaoise District Court  for finalisation of his case having spent two nights in Oberstown.

Judge Andrew Cody said he had seen a probation report, a psychological report,  a letter from a sports coach and a letter from a peace commissioner. He also read a letter from the boy. 

Judge Cody said he was not putting any of this on the boy’s parents. He said he was  satisfied that the parents are” good and decent people and have done their utmost to get” the boy “to change his ways, but they have been unable to do so.”