Tool thief drove off with victim clinging on to his car bonnet in Kilkenny

A man who drove a vehicle away with another man clinging to the bonnet has been given a four-year prison sentence, with the final year suspended at Kilkenny Circuit Court.

Jerry Mongon, 4 Blacken Drive, Old Tramore Road, Waterford appeared before the court last Friday for sentencing in relation to endangerment and theft at Ladywell Street, Thomastown on December 15, 2023. He was also convicted of driving without insurance on the same date. In a victim impact statement, the injured party said that on the date in question he feared he would be killed.

On Friday at Kilkenny Circuit Court Detective Garda Matt Donnellan said that a victim impact statement and a medical report were before the court. The detective garda told the court that on the date in question, following a call, he attended the scene along with a number of colleagues and met the injured party who was receiving medical attention.

The garda also told the court that on the date in question the injured party had been working on apartments when he disturbed a man stealing tools from his van. When he challenged the man to return the tools, he refused and the injured party stood in front of the vehicle the defendant was driving. The defendant then drove at him, forcing him to hold onto the bonnet and then drove out of the carpark erratically and at speed, swerving from side to side throwing him from the vehicle.

The garda also told the court at the same time, by chance, an ambulance was passing when captured the getaway car on dashcam. The car left in the direction of the Bennettsbridge and was subsequently identified on CCTV from the area and the vehicle was seized.

Gardaí contacted Mongon and they met him by arrangement, when he was arrested.

Prosecuting barrister, Dylan Redmond outlined to the court that during his first interview, Mongon exercised his right to silence.

During the second garda interview he admitted driving his wife’s vehicle without permission on the date in question and told the gardaí that the front seat passenger was a 14-year-old child. He also claimed there was another relation in the car but Det

Gda Donnellan said from the CCTV it was clear that it was only the defendant and the child in the vehicle at the time.

The defendant told gardaí that on the date in question he was ‘driving around looking to steal tools from parked cars or vans’ and spotted the parked van at Ladywell Apartments. The defendant admitted to gardaí that he stole the tools from the back of the work van.

Gardaí obtained dashcam from two vehicles who were at the scene and this footage was played in court.

A medical report was handed into the court from St Luke’s Hospital which outlined that the injured party had presented at the Emergency Department on the date in question with a headache, wound to his head and pain, tenderness to his rib cage and a friction burn to his right hip. Scans showed that he had fractured ribs and the injured party also required stitches to the wound to his head.

A victim impact statement was read out to the court which outlined how on the date in question, the injured party was working on a job in Thomastown and was at the point of returning to his van when he realised that there was someone unloading tools from the van and putting them in his car. The injured party asked him to put them back and the defendant did not, but instead drove at the injured party, and drove away with him clinging to the bonnet.

The victim told the court that during the incident he sustained ‘a bloodied head’, ‘three broken ribs’ and was ‘battered and bruised’.

“I was crying in shock and was in pain and in disbelief at what had happened,” he said.

He also outlined that he now has a scar from the injury his sustained in the incident.

Following the incident, the man said that he ‘withdrew into himself’ and felt ‘down and disillusioned’.

“The actions of the assailant have completely impacted my life. I thought I was going to be killed falling off the car,” he said.
“I have scars physically and emotionally and in physical pain,” he added.

Tools, valued at €700 which belonged to the injured party’s employer were not recovered.

The defendant has 74 previous convictions including convictions for theft, possession of stolen property, criminal damage, road traffic offences and dangerous driving.

At the time of the offences before the court the defendant was on temporary release from Cork prison. He is currently serving an eight-month sentence for theft.

Defence barrister Gareth Hayden told the court that his client apologises for his conduct and to the injured party.

“He is member of the Travelling community and has a significant history. He has no previous for violent or endangering offending.

“It was a situation he hadn’t envisaged and he clearly panicked and took actions that he should not have taken. Mr Mongon is lucky that the injured party was not more seriously injured,” said Mr Hayden.

A probation report before the court outlined how the defendant believed that stealing from vehicles was ‘a quick way to make money’ and the defendant describes the incident as ‘a moment of madness’. The report states that the defendant is deemed to be of a moderate risk of reoffending.

“It was out of character for him. It seems like he was intent on stealing and seems that he panicked took the wrong option,” added Mr Hayden.

Judge Jonathan Dunphy said that the work tools were stolen in broad daylight and that the offences had happened in the presence of a 14-year-old could.

Mr Mongon swerved, causing the injured party to fall off the bonnet, the judge said, adding that thankfully an ambulance was driving by at the same time.

The judge said that the aggravating factors included that the defendant was on bail at the time and was disqualified from driving,

“These actions were extremely dangerous. He left the scene and the injured party could have been more seriously injured or killed,” he said adding that he accepted that the defendant’s remorse was genuine.

The judge convicted him of endangerment and theft sentenced him to four years and suspended the final year subject to conditions including that he attend all appointments as directed by the Probation Services and engage with the mental health and addiction services. He also convicted the defendant of driving without insurance and sentenced him to four months. The sentences will run concurrently to each other and consecutively to the sentence he is already serving. The judge also disqualified the defendant for eight years from driving.