Three years jail for man who carried out string of burglaries

Three years jail for man who carried out string of burglaries

By Isabel Hayes

A man who carried out a string of burglaries at commercial premises, including a Sinn Fein constituency office, has been jailed for three years.

Shane Cooney and an accomplice broke into the constituency office of TD Aengus O Snodaigh and Senator Maire Devine on March 20, 2018 and stole laptops, mobile phones and other items, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Friday

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Dublin Circuit Criminal Court

Cooney (29) with an address at Kilmainham Square, Inchicore, also pleaded guilty to carrying out burglaries at Insomnia coffee shop and Tesco Express on South Circular Road on April 5, 2018 and at Puro, Wicklow Street on December 16 the same year.

Cooney made off with nearly €4,000 in cash from the Puro clothing store as the shop owner had not made it to the bank that day, the court heard. He caused criminal damage to the front doors of Tesco and Insomnia by kicking them in while armed with a wrench.

He has 93 previous convictions.

Sentencing him on Friday, Judge Patricia Ryan noted Cooney had a number of previous convictions for similar offences and that the burglary on the clothes shop in particular had a detrimental effect on the business.

She took into account a number of mitigating factors including his early guilty pleas and the fact he previously suffered a head injury. The court heard Cooney struggled with drug addiction but has made “trojan efforts” to rehabilitate himself.

He has three children and a supportive partner of 18 years, the court heard. He is anxious to return home to his children while they are still young.

The court heard Cooney was previously sentenced to five years with 18 months suspended for an aggravated burglary. He was on bail for that offence when he carried out these crimes.

Judge Ryan reactivated the 18-month suspended sentence and factored it into the three year sentence handed down on Friday.

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