Difficulty getting a psychiatric report is delaying case involving Christmas Day fire in Cork house

Difficulties securing a psychiatric report are delaying the sentencing of a man who set fire to a house in Cork city on Christmas Day 2023 while there were people inside.

33-year-old Shane Casey of Shanowen, Rathcormac, County Cork, faces sentencing on three charges at the Central Criminal Court but so far it has not been possible to get the pre-sentencing psychiatric report on the accused.

Ray Boland senior counsel for the defence said that solicitor Diarmuid Kelleher had been making a lot of efforts to get a psychiatric report but to no avail.

Mr Boland said the defence were now trying to get a UK psychiatrist to examine the defendant and prepare a report for the court.

In the meantime the accused has written letters of apology to victims in the case and the defence indicated that copies of these would be sent to the prosecution.

Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford remanded the accused in custody for sentencing on November 28.

Mr Boland said:

“Hopefully, there will be a psychiatric report at that stage.” 

Originally there was an attempted murder charge against the accused. He did not plead guilty to that count but he admitted related charges on the indictment on the basis that the full facts of the case would be given at the sentencing hearing.

Detective Garda Brian Barron originally charged Shane Casey of Shanowen, Rathcormac, County Cork, with the attempted murder of Billy Murphy, a man in his 60s, owner of the house at Dyke Parade, Cork, where the arson was carried out. There was a plea of guilty to a charge of assault causing harm to Mr Murphy, production of an article, namely a blade, in the course of the assault, and finally causing criminal damage to the house and neighbouring properties with intent to endanger life.

It was previously alleged when the case first came before the courts that the accused set fire to the house on Dyke Parade, Cork, just after 6pm on December 25, 2023 when four people were present in the house and that the accused man stood outside swinging a blade when the first person ran from the burning building, telling him:

“You are going to die here tonight.” 

Referring to CCTV and other evidence, Detective Garda Barron said: “At 6.05pm, he exits and stands looking in the open front door at the fire taking hold. At 6.06pm, it is alleged that he closes the front door and attempts to barricaded the front door from the outside, using a piece of timber to jam to the side and then under the door.

“It is alleged he takes a blade from his pocket and holds it out in front of him and waits outside. At 6.08pm, the front door bursts open and [one of the men] attempts to escape the now blazing house.

"It was alleged he said (to one injured party), 'My name is Shane Casey and you remember me from two days ago — you are going to die here tonight.'” 

It was further alleged that one woman had to be rescued from the roof and that it took six units of the fire service more than six hours to bring the fire under control and make the building safe and the fire caused thousands of euro in damage, the detective said.