Man left with head injury following attack with hurley in Dublin, court told

Tom Tuite

A young Dublin man has been denied bail after being accused of striking another male from behind with a hurley several times, causing severe head injuries during a feud-related attack.

Andrew Thomas, 18, of Wad River Close, Ballymun, appeared at Dublin District Court on Saturday, charged with assault causing harm at the AppleGreen shop on Swords Road in Santry, north Dublin on September 28th last year.

He was also charged with possessing a knife as a weapon during an incident at St Mary's Abbey in Dublin 7 on September 20th 2024.

He faced court after investigating gardaí spent months searching for him, believing the teenager had "gone to ground" and may have left the country.

However, Mr Thomas was spotted and arrested at Dublin Airport on Friday while getting a haircut.

Judge Treasa Kelly refused bail and remanded him in custody.

Garda Sean Clyde alleged the incidents were connected to an ongoing feud, which has already involved gun attacks on the accused and his home.

He stated that during the assault, the injured party was at the till area when he was attacked from behind by the accused. The officer maintained, "Mr Thomas struck the man with a hurley on three occasions to his head."

A contested bail hearing revealed claims that the male sustained severe injuries, including a broken nose and swelling to his right eye.

It was alleged the attacker, wearing a black ski mask, took €20 from him, and fled. The court heard that gardaí recovered an identical ski mask two days later during a search of the defendant's address.

Garda Clyde maintained that the accused also got involved in an altercation at St Mary's Abbey.

Youths were verbally abusive to each other, and it was claimed the accused produced a knife, and a more serious charge could arise from that incident.

The court heard there were independent witnesses and CCTV evidence.

Mr Thomas's passport had been seized earlier.

However, Garda Clyde suggested the accused "disappeared" and was gone for three months after the violent incident in the Applegreen shop.

The officer believed he could have left the country by ferry.

He said the accused had been in a feud with another individual in Ballymun, which had caused serious concerns, and it was maintained that shots were fired at his home and the accused himself had once been shot in the arm.

The garda feared there would be more incidents and that "members of the public could be dragged into this".

Defence solicitor Edward Bradbury highlighted that his client had no prior convictions.

In cross-examination, the garda agreed that Mr Thomas did not have a passport or a ticket on him when found at the airport, and "there was nothing to suggest he was going anywhere".

He also acknowledged that the accused had been identified solely by gardai, not by external witnesses.

Pleading for bail, Mr Bradbury asked the judge to consider his client's young age, he had just turned 18, and that there was no evidence of drug addiction.

The accused, who did not address the proceedings, was supported in court by family members.

His solicitor emphasised that his client had the presumption of innocence and he argued that the court could set bail with specific conditions.

However, the application for bail was denied, and Judge Kelly remanded the teenager in custody.

He is scheduled to appear at Cloverhill District Court on Friday via video link. Legal aid was granted.