Jail for defendant who stole garda’s bicycle from station

A 42-YEAR-OLD MAN who stole alcohol from various local outlets, and who took a garda’s bicycle from outside Monaghan Garda Station to get to a nearby vacant property he was illegally occupying, has been given consecutive prison sentences amounting to 12 months.

Jonathan McQuaid, of no fixed abode, lived a productive life until about three years ago before family setbacks and alcohol issues saw him accumulate 22 convictions inside a relatively short period.

His case came before a recent sitting of Monaghan District Court.

In passing sentence, Judge Raymond Finnegan expressed the hope that Mr McQuaid would use his time in prison to “better himself and come out the other side of it”.

McQuaid pleaded guilty to eight charges, the first of which related to a burglary at The Squealing Pig pub at The Diamond, Monaghan Town where, at 3am, on Thursday July 18, 2024, he entered as a trespasser along with another individual and stole alcohol, valued at €213 along with €75 in cash.

Inspector Declan McGarvey confirmed that nothing was recovered for the owner in this instance.

In respect of two charges of theft at Circle K, Coolshannagh, Monaghan Town, on March 16 last, Insp McGarvey said the defendant entered the premises at 7.20pm on that date and gave two cans of Smirnoff Vodka & Cola and one bottle of WKD Blue, worth €14.45 in total, to another person who put the products in their pocket. They then left without paying. Ten minutes later McQuaid returned to the shop alone and took a bottle of wine worth €13, again without tendering payment.

Two thefts at the Applegreen filling station at Clones Road, Monaghan were also recalled, in which the defendant took a €10 bottle of Luis Felipe Edwards wine in each instance, firstly on April 8 last and again on April 18. The inspector noted that on the second occasion the defendant went into a toilet to hide the bottle before making off with it.

Vacant house

Insp McGarvey said gardaí had received a complaint on April 10 last from the owner of a vacant property at New Terrace, Monaghan Town, about people using the house without permission. McQuaid was subsequently charged with trespassing and committing criminal damage at the premises on that date, and also on dates unknown between February 9 and April 9, 2025.

The inspector said, when gardaí arrived, they found McQuaid sleeping in an upstairs area, and observed “considerable damage” to the house. There was food and faecal matter on the sitting room floor, as well as empty alcohol bottles. It was clear that the defendant had been illegally occupying the premises for some time.

A stolen bicycle was found outside the property, and McQuaid admitted that he had taken this from outside Monaghan Garda Station on the previous night, as a result of which he was charged with taking unlawful possession of the item (listed as belonging to a person who is a member of the gardaí) on either April 9 or April 10.

Inspector McGarvey said the defendant had 22 previous convictions, giving an outline of the more recent counts and noting that they were mainly for thefts.

Solicitor Niall Fox said both of his client’s parents were deceased, and that a brother to whom he was very close died of cancer last year. Effectively, McQuaid had alcohol issues and had become homeless and was living on the streets.

The defendant is a stonemason by trade whose life was very productive up until a few years ago, the lawyer said. In this, he pointed to the fact that his client had no previous convictions prior to 2022 but picked up 22 of these in the meantime.

Regarding the house in which he was found living, Mr Fox said it was a vacant property that had a broken window his client had been using in order to gain access.

The thefts were all to do with bottles of wine or beer, and while his client was asking for as much credit as possible, he was also accepting that, at the moment, prison was probably “a better place” for him than being on the streets. That was the sad indictment of the defendant’s life, Mr Fox concluded.

Judge Finnegan said it was indeed a “sad reflection on how Mr McQuaid has fallen”, but that it was to be hoped he could use his time in prison to better himself.

On that basis, he imposed five months in prison for the burglary and thefts at The Squealing Pig, with consecutive two-month terms for the two counts of trespassing and criminal damage at the unoccupied New Terrace house.

Further one-month sentences were handed down, again consecutive, for thefts at Applegreen and Circle K and for the unlawful taking of the pedal cycle, bringing the total to 12 months.

Judge Finnegan backdated all prison terms to May 28 when the defendant was taken into custody, and recognisances were fixed in the event of any appeal.