Doesn’t remember stealing van from garage forecourt

Defendant with ten-month jail term hanging over his head

An Armagh man, who has no memory of stealing a van from outside a Monaghan garage and driving it until it ran out of fuel, eventually abandoning the vehicle at Crosskeys in Cavan, has received back-to-back five months suspended sentences.

Caolan Myles (26), who is currently on remand in custody in relation to circuit court matters in Monaghan, was warned he risks being sent to jail for 10 months if he is found to commit any further crime over the next 24 months.

He was also handed a four-year driving ban for refusing to provide a specimen when legally required to do so at Cavan Garda Station after he was arrested on October 10, 2025.

Myles took the van, in which the driver had left the keys in the ignition, from outside Coyles’ Mace in Rockcorry earlier that same date and drove off.

Myles, who was appeared in Cavan District Court before Judge Raymond Finnegan, was represented by Sara Brennan BL, instructed by solicitor Catherine Taaffe.

The defendant also pleaded guilty to possessing €70 worth of DMA tablets at Monaghan Garda Station arising from a separate arrest on March 21, 2021.

Regarding the drive off, Judge Finnegan was told that Myles was identified by gardaí on CCTV.

It was stated that the defendant was granted bail in relation to the charges but never took it up.

There was no damage caused to the stolen vehicle, which Ms Brennan said contained a wealth of valuable tools, all of which remained untouched.

127 previous

He had 127 previous convictions at the time of this incident.

“The court is aware of Mr Myles,” said Sergeant Damien Galligan, noting the defendant’s most recent conviction was for assault in 2023 for which he received a two-year prison sentence.

The dad of two, Ms Brennan said, has “no reason” to be in Crosskeys, and she believes he was attempting to drive home, only that “alcohol was a factor”.

“He has had a problem with drink since he was a juvenile,” stated the barrister, noting how her client had enjoyed a period of sobriety before lapsing.

Along with two suspended five-month sentences, Judge Finnegan banned Myles from driving for four years, taking into account the drugs charge.

“It’s something over his head,” said the judge.

* This article was published with support from the Court Reporting Scheme