Connacht Tribune
CCTV on RTÉ’s Crimecall leads to prison for GAA club thief
CCTV footage shown on RTÉ television programme Crimecall led to the identification and successful prosecution of a 22-year-old Galway City man for the theft of equipment from a Conamara GAA club.
Michael Delaney of Bay 3 at Carrowbrowne Halting Site, Headford Road, Galway, and with an address in Thurles, Co Tipperary, was convicted at Derrynea District Court of theft of a Wilks TX750 power-washer worth €600 from Rosmuc GAA.
Delaney, who had 24 previous convictions including for theft, burglary, road traffic and public order offences, had denied the charge and contested the case.
But after viewing video footage of the incident from two separate angles of CCTV cameras at Coiste na Páirce, Gort Mór, Rosmuc, Judge Mary Fahy said the defendant was “very clearly identified” as the thief.
Judge Fahy said it was regrettable, given how clear the CCTV footage was, that Delaney did not plead.
She imposed a six-month prison sentence and two-year driving disqualification because he used his vehicle in the commission of a crime.
Chairman of Rosmuc GAA, Brendan Kinneavy, confirmed the incident was captured on CCTV footage.
At 4pm on November 23, 2020 a man was captured on video using an object – possibly a rock or wrench – to break open the lock of the club’s shed. Minutes later, he was seen removing the power washer from the shed.
Mr Kinneavy confirmed nobody had permission to enter the shed, or to use the tool.
Investigating Garda Aidan Coughlan engaged CCTV expert Mark O’Donnell to download the footage. He said he did not recognise the man in the video but forwarded it to RTÉ’s Crimecall programme.
Thurles-based Garda Robert Donovan saw the programme on March 29, 2021 and recognised the person in the video as Michael Delaney.
He said he had dealings previously with Delaney who lived on-and-off with his wife and father-in-law in Thurles.
Defending solicitor Michael Cunningham put it to Garda Donovan that he was guessing and that he could not have identified his client from the footage because the perpetrator was wearing “nondescript clothing and a baseball cap”.
Garda Donovan said that he recognised Delaney’s distinctive cheekbone and jaw-line, his gait and the way he walked. He also recognised his face from a side-angle on the video.
Judge Mary Fahy then viewed the CCTV for several minutes and agreed Delaney was clearly identified and had a case to answer.
Delaney took the stand and denied the theft. He insisted he was in Thurles with his wife that day, but he conceded when asked by Judge Fahy that he had not offered this as a defence when he was initially questioned by Gardaí.
“I don’t want to be done for something I didn’t do. I’m innocent,” he said.
Delaney who claimed to be ‘very religious’ showed Judge Fahy a tattoo of ‘praying hands’ on the back of his leg. He said the tattoo was done in England for his 21st birthday, in 2019, which pre-dated the offence.
Mr Cunningham said the man caught on CCTV was wearing shorts and did not have a tattoo. But in reply to Judge Fahy, Delaney could not produce proof of when exactly he got the tattoo.
Imposing a six-month prison sentence and two-year driving disqualification, Judge Fahy said: “The defendant’s face is clearly identified. I’ve no doubt it was him”. Judge Fahy described Delaney’s evidence as “at best, totally untruthful”.
She said she hadn’t watched Crimecall in years but praised it for helping to solve crimes including cases more serious than this.
Recognisances were fixed in the event of an appeal, and Delaney lodged half of his own €800 surety.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
