Cork man says he didn’t realise barring order meant he couldn’t text ex

A 48-year-old man claimed that he did nothing wrong after two nights in custody on a charge of breaching a barring order. One of the two texts he sent to his ex-partner said: “My heart is broken.”

Garda Eoin Hodnett said the other text allegedly sent by the man, by WhatsApp, stated: “What killed your feelings for someone you were once madly in love with?”

The woman called to her local Garda station in West Cork on Saturday to complain that she was put in fear by the alleged breach of the interim barring order when she received the two texts.

She obtained the interim barring order last Wednesday, November 26, and the man moved out of the house that day.

One of the terms of the interim barring order was that he would have no contact with her and only text respectfully in relation to child access.

The 48-year-old was arrested on Saturday and spent two nights in custody, charged with breaching the interim barring order.

Subsequently, at Cork District Court, Judge Mary Dorgan released him on strict bail conditions and sent the case to the relevant district court in West Cork.

The woman testified at the in-camera hearing, where the parties cannot be identified: “I do not trust he wouldn’t text me again (if granted bail).” The defendant was called by his solicitor, Shane Collins-Daly, to give evidence in his application for bail on Monday.

He said he left the house on Wednesday, stuffed the interim barring order in his pocket, never read it, and did not realise he could not send a text.

He said he knew he was required to stay out of the house and he said he did that. Mr Collins-Daly said there was nothing threatening in either text.

Before he left the witness box, the 48-year-old man said: “I am accused of all sorts of stuff and I’ve done nothing wrong.”

Bail conditions require him not to go within 10 miles (16km) of the woman’s house and not to contact her by any means, directly or indirectly. Judge Dorgan also put him on a curfew to be home between 11pm and 7am every night.