Drunk man damaged neighbour’s flowerpots and car

A 52-YEAR-old Carlow man was found guilty of causing criminal damage to a neighbour’s flowerpots and car in an incident that occurred on 3 September 2025.

Patrick Fagan, with an address at 4 Old Burrin, Carlow, was found guilty on two counts of criminal damage at a sitting of Carlow District Court on 12 February by Judge Geraldine Carthy. The judge had “no doubt” of his guilt, despite his testimony in court that he had been merely trying to get into his own house as he had misplaced his keys.

Two of his neighbours took the stand, one of whom, residing at 5 Old Burrin for the past 28 years, said that she had “heard a commotion” from her front sitting room and looked out of her front window to see Mr Fagan banging on the window and door of number 6. He was apparently shouting abusive and offensive language, asking its inhabitants to “wake up” and let him into the house.

According to the witness, he appeared “unsteady on his feet” and ran his hand against the victim’s black Audi car. She saw him go around the side of the house to the back door and heard glass breaking.

The properties along this road are detached and have gaps in between them. The witness said “there’s been some disruption” from the occupiers of number 4 in the past.

In footage shown to the court, the witness had videoed the defendant from a window at the back of her house picking up an outdoor brush in 6 Old Burrin and beating the patio door with it, continuing to shout foul language. He then threw down the brush and went back to the front of the house.

The victim, who is the owner-occupier of 6 Old Burrin, explained to the court through a Chinese Mandarin interpreter that on the day in question, he went out to walk his dog at around 4.45pm. When he returned home, his neighbour informed him to be careful as she had seen someone in his backyard breaking things.

He noticed his flower pots were broken, a small gate in the side passage was broken, some glass bottles that were in a bag in his garden had been smashed and the brush had been broken into two pieces. He then walked to the front of his house and observed a clear strong scratch on the back trunk of his vehicle, with the oil tank cap broken on the right side. He told the court that he did not recall seeing any damage of this kind before leaving the house.

Mr Fagan’s solicitor Joe Farrell intimated to the victim that there was some long-standing disagreement between another Chinese family living in 3 Old Burrin and those living at number 4, which was a house share rental property. The victim said he knew the family in that property but was not sure of any disagreement. He said they were not involved in this incident.

Mr Farrell replied: “I find that hard to believe.” Garda Aoife Bartley took a report of criminal damage later that evening, taking statements from the occupier of the house and the witness and photographs of the damage. At 9.30pm, she arrested Mr Fagan under section 2(1) of the Criminal Damage Act, 1991 and brought him to Carlow Garda Station. 

In a voluntary statement under caution, when asked if he could recall what he did, Mr Fagan said: “The short answer is no” and that “It’s very out of character for me, but if there’s footage of me doing it, then I guess I did it”.

In his evidence to the court, Mr Fagan explained that he “wasn’t exactly sober” on the day in question and had misplaced his front door key. He had very little recollection of what happened, but believed he was trying to get into his own property and wake up his housemates to let him in. He said the damage to the car was caused by him falling against it with his keys in his hand after he had found them.

The defendant did not recall how he got home from the garda station but said that he woke up at 5pm the next day and realised what had happened when he found the charge sheet in his back pocket. He claimed the footage taken by his neighbour was of him trying to get into his own house.

When Mr Farrell put it to the witness that the footage was of the defendant in his own back garden, the witness replied: “Most certainly not.” She claimed there had “been some disruption” from the tenants in number 4 and had complained to the landlord about them.

Mr Farrell further claimed that there was no direct evidence that the defendant had caused the damage to the car and asked the court to find reasonable doubt in this charge.

However, after hearing the evidence, Judge Carthy said: “I cannot help but be persuaded by the independent evidence of the witness. The footage is quite clear.” 

Mr Fagan has one previous conviction for a public order offence in 2021 and will be sentenced in respect of the offences on 10 June.