Armed shop raider to serve five years in jail

An armed robber has been sentenced to eight years in prison with the final three years suspended, for robbing a shop at knifepoint.

Brendan McGeown (26), of 29 Glenbaun, Ballybane, Galway, who has spent most of his adult life so far in prison, jumped up on the counter at Merlin Park Stores on July 20 last year and threatened a shop assistant with a knife before making off with a plastic bag full of money.

He pleaded guilty to robbery and to producing a knife during the course of the robbery at Galway Circuit Criminal Court last December and sentence was adjourned to last week’s court.

Garda Ronan Leonard told the sentence hearing McGeown entered the shop wearing dark clothing with his face covered. He made a number of threats to the male shop assistant, while making stabbing gestures towards him with the knife.

He handed a blue plastic bag to the man and told him to fill it with cash from the till.

The man did as he was told and McGeown left the shop with an estimated €900.

As he was leaving, he turned to the shop assistant and said:  “The next time, do it faster.”

Gardaí viewed CCTV from various cameras in the general area and called to McGeown’s girlfriend’s apartment in Boireann Beag, Roscam four hours later where they found the blue plastic bag with the stolen money still inside, thrown in a dustbin.

McGeown was hiding outside on the balcony.  He had changed into different clothes and was clearly under the influence of drugs, Garda Leonard said.

Gardai found a black bin bag beside him on the balcony which contained the clothes he had been wearing during the robbery.

Garda Leonard said McGeown admitted his involvement in the robbery shortly after his arrest that night but he denied any involvement the next morning.

The court heard he had first come to Garda attention aged 13 and had been in and out of prison ever since.

“He has spent most of his life in prison due to his serious addictions to heroin and cocaine,” Garda Leonard said.

He confirmed the accused had 30 previous convictions, including three for robbery, two for serious assaults, two for less serious assaults, numerous thefts, burglary and aggravated burglary.

Defence barrister, Brendan Browne said all of McGeown’s offences were committed while he was taking drugs.

He had been held on remand in prison since last July and was finding prison difficult due to the effects of detoxification, he said.

Judge Rory McCabe sentenced him to eight years in prison for the robbery charge and imposed a concurrent three-year sentence for the production of a weapon.

He suspended the final three years of the robbery sentence.