Father accused of taking part in two fingers ‘amputated’ attack gets bail

A father of three accused of taking part in an attack where a man was chased into a house and had two fingers “amputated” in Dublin has been granted bail, reports Tom Tuite.

A claw hammer, a machete and an acidic liquid were reported to have been used in the attack in Clondalkin, Dublin, on May 9, a judge heard on Saturday.

Widower Bernard Mongan Sr, 42, of Deansrath Grove, Clondalkin, appeared at Dublin District Court charged with assault causing harm to a man, aged 29, production of an implement as a weapon and burglary. He was the third person to come before the courts over the incident.

Garda Shane O’Brien told Judge William Aylmer that multiple armed males pursued the man through the Bawnogue area of Clondalkin for about 25 minutes.

He attempted to flee from them on foot until he “took refuge” in a stranger’s home at Kilcronan View.

A contested bail hearing was told that while running into the house, the injured man asked the owner to ring gardai and an ambulance, before he was followed into the property by several males.

Garda O’Brien said the householder reported hearing the man inside shouting “leave me alone, leave me alone”.

The investigating officer cited the seriousness of the case and the strength of evidence, which was said to have included CCTV footage from the area.

Another member of the group was alleged to have been carrying a machete, and it was claimed Mr Mongan Sr had a claw hammer and a bottle suspected to contain ammonia.

The contested bail hearing was told that when the man fled into the house, he went into a child’s room where he was assaulted, and suffered “life-altering injuries to two fingers, with his thumb and index finger on his left being cut off.

His left middle finger was cut to the bone and “hanging on by skin only”.

Garda O’Brien said the man was discharged but could not attend the court hearing due to infection control concerns.

The garda alleged that the injured party also had an acidic liquid, suspected to be ammonia, thrown over him during the assault.

He was taken to hospital for medical intervention, including surgery to attempt to re-attach his amputated fingers, which was unsuccessful.

Garda O’Brien said the man has been “disfigured for life” and the wounded hand will never be fully functioning again.

An examination of the scene showed blood in the child’s room where the man had fled. The door handle on the inside had “snapped”, and the outside handle was “bent out of shape”, which Garda O’Brien believed resulted from excessive force to open the door.

An off-duty nurse who tried to assist the injured man afterwards also needed hospital care and will be off work for weeks due to inhalation of ammonia fumes, the court was told.

The garda voiced witness interference concerns, telling the court that the accused and the injured man lived nearby.

Defence counsel Kevin McCrave, instructed by solicitor Simon Fleming, put to the garda that his client believed the injured party had been seen at a wedding earlier this week. The garda thought the man was still in the hospital at that stage.

Counsel raised concerns about hearsay evidence and that prosecution witnesses were not called. He stressed that his client was not a flight risk, lived most of his life at his family home and had arranged to meet gardai by appointment to be arrested.

Judge Aylmer held that conditions could deal with witness intimidation concerns, the witnesses did not testify at the hearing, there was no direct evidence the man had inflicted the injuries, and the threshold had not been reached to refuse bail.

He set Mr Mongan’s bond at €1,000 but required a €300 cash lodgement. On release, he must obey a 10 pm – 7 am curfew, reside at his current address, notify gardai of any change, and sign on daily at his local garda station.

He was remanded in custody with consent ot bail on these terms and ordered to appear at Blanchardstown District Court on May 27.

Mr Mongan, who did not address the court, was granted legal aid after the judge noted he was unemployed, receiving €480 a week from social welfare.

A 17-year-old boy and a man in his 20s were charged earlier this week and had bail terms set.