Teen (15) led gardaí on Dublin-Longford high-speed car chase, court told

Tom Tuite

A speeding teenage car thief outran a Garda helicopter and covered about 100km from Dublin to Longford in just 35 minutes before crashing, a court has heard.

The boy (16) pleaded guilty on Monday to stealing the car and dangerous driving on February 24th.

Dublin Children's Court heard the youth, who cannot be identified because he is a minor, led gardaí on a high-speed pursuit, which ended when he lost control of the vehicle after crashing into a roundabout and "spun" off the road.

Judge Brendan Toale adjourned sentencing for the boy, who remains on bail.

Garda David Jordan told the court that the Volkswagen Golf was reported stolen at 12.05am in Cabra. The owner had been unpacking after returning from a holiday and had left the keys in the car when it was stolen from outside their house.

A squad car activated its lights and sirens and followed the vehicle, but the stolen stolen car continued to the N4 at speed. The court heard the Garda Air Support Unit "was not able to keep up due to the speeds involved".

At one point, the stolen car undertook a lorry on the hard shoulder to evade gardaí, and after 35 minutes, the driver collided with a roundabout, "lost control" and "spun" off the road at Edgeworthstown.

Gardaí caught up with the vehicle and the boy, who was then aged 15, was found sitting in the driver's seat.

Defence solicitor Brian Keenan said a probation report had raised serious concerns for the teenager, who has been the subject of a Garda Information Message (GIM) which is a written warning issued to let people know of a threat to their life. The court heard this had impacted the boy's family life and they had to "move around".

The teenager did not address the court.

The solicitor asked the court to hear a mitigation plea for the boy when the case resumes in November.

Judge Toale agreed and remanded the boy, accompanied to court by a parent, on continuing bail.

He asked for an updated pre-sentence probation report on the teen and for gardaí to canvas the car owner on whether they wished to make a victim impact statement.