Bail refused for man charged with knife incident at Dunnes Stores

A man charged with having a knife and making threats at Dunnes Stores in Letterkenny has been refused bail.

Sean Gallagher was remanded in custody when he appeared before Judge Éiteáin Cunningham on Tuesday.

Gallagher, a 45-year-old of Burnside Park, Letterkenny, was charged with an alleged offence on August 21, 2023.

He was charged that, at Dunnes Stores, Oldtown Road, Letterkenny, he did without lawful authority or reasonable excuse have with him in a public place a kitchen knife for causing injury to or incapacitating a person.

Gallagher was further charged at 11.05am on Tuesday at Letterkenny courthouse in connection with the alleged incident. When cautioned by Gardai, Gallagher replied: ‘No’.

Sergeant Jim Collins said he was objecting to bail. He told the court that the offence carries a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment,

Sergeant Collins told the court that the defendant is before the court on other matters and said Gallagher had ‘clearly intimidated a witness’. There is a history of five bench warrants for Gallagher, the court heard.

Sergeant Collins said it was a concern that Gallagher would continue to commit further serious offences if granted bail. He said the accused had ‘a number’ of previous convictions, including five for assault and 14 for theft.

“The main concern is a threat towards a witness in a case that is currently live,” Sergeant Collins said.

Solicitor for the accused, Mr Patsy Gallagher, said his client is a resident in Letterkenny and a father-of-two. The solicitor said that the defendant is ‘adamant’ that there was no knife in his pocket. He said a knife is not visible in CCTV footage of the alleged incident and that conditions could be imposed to enable his client to be granted bail.

Sergeant Collins said: “there is nothing to say that he won’t run into a witness or the injured party in town or anywhere else.”

Judge Cunningham, having listened to the evidence and the submissions, said the prosecution had established objections regarding the probability of the accused being likely to evade justice and the possibility of interference with witnesses. Judge Cunningham said the accused man is charged with a serious offence and she was satisfied that refusing bail was considered necessary regarding the possibility of the commission of further serious offences.

Gallagher was remanded in custody to appear again at Letterkenny District Court on Monday, September 11.