Wicklow man (21) sentenced to 18 months for firearm possession
Seán McCárthaigh
A young Wicklow man has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after throwing a firearm over a garden wall to avoid it being detected by gardaí when he was aged 15.
Jamie O’Connor (21), an unemployed father of one from Ballywaltrim Heights, Bray, Co Wicklow, pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of a firearm in suspicious circumstances on Vevay Road, Bray, Co Wicklow, on April 8th, 2020, contrary to Section 27A of the Firearms Act 1964.
Detective Garda Aisling Kelly told a sitting of Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court that she was on patrol in an unmarked Garda car on that date when she spotted the accused with another youth on Vevay Road.
Det Garda Kelly told prosecution counsel, James Kelly BL, that nothing was discovered when they stopped and searched both youths who were known to gardaí at the time.
However, the court heard that gardaí subsequently became aware that an object had come “flying through the air” over a wall and landed in a garden where a man was playing with his children.
Det Garda Kelly said the object was subsequently identified as a 4.5 calibre Swiss Arms air pistol, which is classified as a firearm under the relevant legislation.
CCTV footage recovered from a passing bus identified the accused as the individual who had discarded the weapon.
She gave evidence that DNA material from the firearm matched the accused.
O’Connor, who was 15 at the time of the offence, was subsequently arrested and interviewed in the company of his mother in December 2021, but made no admissions.
Det Garda Kelly said the accused was charged on September 12th, 2022 with possession of a firearm for no lawful purpose.
The court heard that O’Connor has 70 previous convictions.
Det Garda Kelly told Judge Patrick Quinn that the accused had 23 convictions prior to the incident with the firearm.
The court heard evidence that O’Connor is known to be involved in the sale and supply of drugs while also being addicted to drugs.
Under cross-examination by defence counsel, Edmund Sweetman BL, Det Garda Kelly said she was unaware why the accused was in possession of the firearm on the day.
Asked about the delay in prosecuting the case, she explained that the offence had occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has resulted in delays to the weapon being examined and getting DNA analysis done.
Det Garda Kelly said O’Connor had also been in rehab at the time and had also spent a period in the Oberstown detention centre for juveniles.
She agreed with Mr Sweetman that a forensic examination of the weapon had determined that it was not capable of being fired as it was missing a gas cylinder.
The court heard that although O’Connor, who had worked for a short period as a construction labourer, had spent a period in rehab, he had since returned to using drugs and had an addiction to cannabis and other illicit substances.
Mr Sweetman said the accused had expressed regret for an incident that must have been “very scary” for the man who discovered the weapon in his garden and was ashamed over what had happened.
Judge Quinn observed that although the weapon was a pellet gun, it had “all the hallmarks of a gun.”
“If it was pointed at you, you would not necessarily know it’s an air gun,” he remarked.
However, he acknowledged that it could not have been fired and accepted that the offence was “at the lower end of the scale.”
The court heard that a probation report on the accused was “discouraging.”
Taking the defendant’s young age at the time of the offence into account, Judge Quinn sentenced O’Connor to two years in prison but suspended the final six months on condition that he keep the peace for a period of six months on his release.
The judge urged the accused to try and get his life “back on track” and to cure his addiction.
