Coolock rioter caught after ‘Ross’ tattoo spotted on his leg

Fiona Ferguson

A shorts-clad rioter who was identified on protest footage by a tattoo of his name on his leg has been remanded in custody to be sentenced later.

Ross O’Neill (36) picked up a piece of wood and threw it in the direction of gardai during the disturbances at the former Crown Paints site in Coolock in 2024.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that O’Neill was frustrated at perceived plans to house “undocumented males” at a proposed IPAS centre, as his sister was homeless at the time.

O’Neill of Buttercup Park, Darndale, pleaded guilty to rioting at Malahide Road, Coolock, on July 15, 2024.

Garda Kevin Hynes told Eimear Delargey BL, prosecuting, that the background to the offending involved large-scale rioting on the day in question at the former Crown Paints factory on Malahide Road.

Around 40 gardaí from across Dublin were called in to assist in policing the incident. There were violent scenes with a JCB set on fire and missiles fired at gardaí. A security guard who was injured had to be extracted from the site.

Gda Hynes said O’Neill’s involvement was captured on CCTV and took place as gardaí were attempting to dismantle a metal structure at the site. A number of males were acting aggressively pushing and pulling the barriers with gardaí.

O’Neill, who was wearing shorts and had “Ross” tattooed on his leg, was seen approaching before jumping in the air and throwing a piece of wood in the direction of gardaí. It grazed one garda on the side of the head. O’Neill left the scene as a passenger on the rear of an electric bike.

Gda Hynes said the disturbances continued, but there was no evidence that O’Neill returned at any stage.

Gardaí on patrol at a later date recognised O’Neill as a person in the footage, and he was arrested.

Keith Spencer BL, defending, outlined that the riot had taken place in the context of the people present perceiving that an IPAS centre was being put on their doorstep.

The garda told Mr Spencer that he had not seen his client rioting before and agreed that O’Neill was not aligned to any far-right group as far as he knew.

Mr Spencer said O’Neill wished him to impress on the court that there was no racial motivation for the offending and that, in fact, his client came from a diverse family background.

He said O’Neill’s sister had been made homeless, and O’Neill perceived the introduction of “undocumented males” within the community to be something that was damaging and was favouring these people above his sister. He said that was his client's rationale for going.

Counsel said O’Neill was not an organiser and not affiliated with any groups. He said he regrets his actions and apologises.

He said O’Neill had a good work history, was involved in a CE scheme for the past ten years and has contributed to his community in that capacity.

Mr Spencer submitted that this was a single incident, deplorable as it was, but there was no wider context, and no one had been injured in the offence. He said the offence runs counter to the way O’Neill has lived his life for the past ten years. He asked the court for a non-custodial sanction.

Judge Martina Baxter ordered a probation report and remanded O’Neill in custody until June.