News
Charities among premises targeted on criminal’s spree
A burglar has been sentenced to twelve months in prison for breaking into seventeen business premises – including three solicitors’ offices – and stealing cash, cameras and laptops in order to feed his gambling addiction.
Chris Eastwood (39), with a former address in Snipe Lawn, Newcastle, smashed in front doors, ransacked offices and stole cash and laptops, which he sold on to unscrupulous buyers in order to get money to feed his gambling addiction.
When Gardai arrested and searched Eastwood, they were amazed at the amount of betting slips he had in his pockets, defence solicitor, Sean Acton, told Galway District Court.
The State withdrew charges for handling the stolen property after Eastwood pleaded guilty to 17 counts of burglary.
Eastwood was already serving a eight-month sentence imposed on him by the court last February for two other break-ins and at this week’s court, Judge Mary Fahy added to that sentence by imposing two consecutive six-month sentences, which are to be served on the termination of the eight-month sentence.
Eastwood pleaded guilty in February to breaking into Hibernian House, Eyre Square, to commit theft on September 1 last year.
He had already received a suspended five-month sentence in November 2014, for breaking into Ross House on Merchant’s Road on October 12, 2014, and stealing a petty cash box.
That sentence was activated in February at the request of the probation service because Eastwood had not complied with the terms of the suspension by engaging with the service.
In relation to the more recent burglaries, committed between July 2015 and February of this year, Inspector Mick Dwyer went through each charge outlining the property stolen and the damage caused during each burglary.
The burglaries took place in offices primarily near the Docks, further along Merchant’s Road, and at Kiltartan House in Forster Street.
Three solicitors’ offices were also broken into and ransacked with mainly laptops and cash being stolen from nearly all of the 17 premises.
A beauty salon, a language school and an accountant’s office were also targeted, but Eastwood also broke into the National Council for the Blind (NCBI) offices at Odeon House in Eyre Square, on October 15 last where he stole six laptops and two machines which are used to assist visually impaired people, along with €500 cash.
Eastwood returned the machines which assist the visually impaired when Gardai explained their importance to the users. He also returned three of the laptops, but the rest of the property and cash was not recovered.
He took three laptops from one solicitor’s office worth €2,400, a quantity of alcohol and some petty cash.
He forced his way into An Post offices in Kiltartan House on August 31 last year and stole four hard drives worth €1,000 each and €200 cash.
He broke into another solicitor’s office one night last July by smashing through the front door, and stole two laptops worth €1,000 each.
Judge Fahy became concerned on hearing of the break-ins at solicitor’s offices due to the sensitive and confidential information they might have stored on their laptops, which, she said, can be so easily stolen.
Mr Acton assured her that solicitors never store confidential client files on laptops for that very reason. Files, he said, are always stored on hard drives and are encrypted.
Insp Dwyer listed several more business premises that were targeted by Eastwood.
He said he broke through doors to get into the Cancer Society shop at Merchant’s Road on February 3 last, but took nothing as there was only clothes in the shop.
Judge Fahy said it was appalling he would break into a charity shop looking to steal money.
Eastwood also broke into the Adult Education Centre on Merchant’s Road on the same night, stealing eleven cameras valued at €5,500 and a €200 laptop, none of which were recovered.
Mr Acton said his client had a troubled upbringing and had been in care in England until he was 13. He went to university in England and worked in management for a supermarket chain for seven years before moving to Ireland eight years ago.
He said Eastwood developed significant mental health issues combined with gambling and alcohol addictions and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia in 2008.
Mr Acton said Detective Gerry Carroll, who spearheaded the Garda investigation into the 17 burglaries, would be the first to acknowledge that up to 15 of those burglaries would never have been solved if Eastwood had not owned up to them when questioned about the other two.
“Without his confession he would not be here today and that is the most profound thing I can say in mitigation. The Gardai are very, very satisfied with his level of co-operation,” Mr Acton said.
Judge Fahy said that was all very well but a huge amount of laptops and cash was still missing. She noted he returned the machines for the visually impaired and she wondered why he did not return the rest of the property.
Mr Acton explained his client had two major addictions; alcohol, but more importantly, gambling.
“When he was searched by the Gardai they were amazed at the extraordinary amount of betting slips that were in his pockets. He sold the stolen property but he is the only one before the court,” the solicitor added, hinting that Eastwood’s accomplice was never caught and neither were those who bought the stolen laptops off him.
As Eastwood had pleaded guilty, the judge said her hands were tied and she could impose no more than a total of 20 months (including the eight months already being served) given that he was entitled to credit for pleading.
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.
On the eve of completing his 150th marathon, an odyssey that has taken him across 53 countries, Loughrea’s Marathon Man has announced that he is planning to hang up his running shoes.
But not before Jarlath Fitzgerald completes another ten races, making it 160 marathons on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
“I want to draw the line in 2026. I turn 57 in October and when I reach 60 it’s the finishing line. The longer races are taking it out of me. I did 20 miles there two weeks ago and didn’t feel good. It’s getting harder,” he reveals.
“I’ve arthritis in both hips and there’s wear and tear in the knees.”
We speak as he is about to head out for a run before his shift in Supervalu Loughrea. Despite his physical complaints, he still clocks up 30 miles every second week and generally runs four days a week.
Jarlath receives injections to his left hip to keep the pain at bay while running on the road.
To give his joints a break, during the winter he runs cross country and often does a five-mile trek around Kylebrack Wood.
He is planning on running his 150th marathon in Cork on June 4, where a group of 20 made up of work colleagues, friends and running mates from Loughrea Athletics Club will join him.
Some are doing the 10k, others are doing the half marathon, but all will be there on the finishing line to cheer him on in the phenomenal achievement.
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.
From the Galway City Tribune – An impassioned plea for a ‘masterplan’ that would guide Galway City into the future has been made in the Dáil. Galway West TD Catherine Connolly stated this week that there needed to be an all-inclusive approach with “vision and leadership” in order to build a sustainable city.
Deputy Connolly spoke at length at the crisis surrounding traffic and housing in Galway city and said that not all of the blame could be laid at the door of the local authority.
She said that her preference would be the provision of light rail as the main form of public transport, but that this would have to be driven by the government.
“I sat on the local council for 17 years and despaired at all of the solutions going down one road, metaphorically and literally. In 2005 we put Park & Ride into the development plan, but that has not been rolled out. A 2016 transport strategy was outdated at the time and still has not been updated.
“Due to the housing crisis in the city, a task force was set up in 2019. Not a single report or analysis has been published on the cause of the crisis,” added Deputy Connolly.
She then referred to a report from the Land Development Agency (LDA) that identified lands suitable for the provision of housing. But she said that two-thirds of these had significant problems and a large portion was in Merlin Park University Hospital which, she said, would never have housing built on it.
In response, Minister Simon Harris spoke of the continuing job investment in the city and also in higher education, which is his portfolio.
But turning his attention to traffic congestion, he accepted that there were “real issues” when it came to transport, mobility and accessibility around Galway.
“We share the view that we need a Park & Ride facility and I understand there are also Bus Connects plans.
“I also suggest that the City Council reflect on her comments. I am proud to be in a Government that is providing unparalleled levels of investment to local authorities and unparalleled opportunities for local authorities to draw down,” he said.
Then Minister Harris referred to the controversial Galway City Outer Ring Road which he said was “struck down by An Bord Pleanála”, despite a lot of energy having been put into that project.
However, Deputy Connolly picked up on this and pointed out that An Bord Pleanála did not say ‘No’ to the ring road.
“The High Court said ‘No’ to the ring road because An Bord Pleanála acknowledged it failed utterly to consider climate change and our climate change obligations.
“That tells us something about An Bord Pleanála and the management that submitted such a plan.”
In the end, Minister Harris agreed that there needed to be a masterplan for Galway City.
“I suggest it is for the local authority to come up with a vision and then work with the Government to try to fund and implement that.”
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
