‘Am I about to be shot?’

“Just you wait. I’m going to come back and put two bullets in your head in 20 minutes.”

Those menacing words, spat in anger by Mark Carolan, foreshadowed what would become a terrifying ordeal that left a local businessman deeply shaken and traumatised.

Moments after uttering the threat, Carolan (38) walked the 100 metres to his Cavan Town home, retrieved a 9mm Bruni-manufactured pistol, and stormed back into Ali Kebabish on Main Street. CCTV footage, shown at Cavan Circuit Court, captured staff freezing in horror as Carolan flashed the pistol and pointed it directly at them.

After, the defendant, still reeling from the effects of a cider, wine and a cannabis bender the night before, went home again and got into “bed” to wait for the gardaí to arrive.

Last week, Judge John Aylmer jailed Carolan for a total of two and a half years for possessing the gun without a licence at the local takeaway, and for threatening to kill or cause serious harm to Ali Saftar and Usman Aktar during the incident shortly after midnight on August 14, 2024.

What Carolan knew at the time - but his victims did not - was that the semi-automatic weapon he whipped in their direction fired only blanks.

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For Mr Saftar, staring down the black gun barrel has had a “lasting impact”.

“Is this how my life ends? Am I about to be shot? Will I see my family again?” he asked himself, detailing the “flood” of thoughts that went through his mind in his victim impact statement.

He also described the overwhelming surge of terror that washed over him.

“The fear I felt in that moment is something that has stayed with me ever since,” said Mr Saftar, who often replays the incident in his mind, haunted by how easily “it could have ended differently”.

Earlier that evening, Mr Saftar had cause to step in when Carolan became embroiled in a violent altercation with local youths, with “punches” exchanged. Seeking to defuse the situation, Mr Saftar told Carolan to “cop on, they are underage” and to leave the teens alone.

But Carolan, a native of Kingscourt and a former law student, became irate. His chilling parting words were to the takeaway staff were: “I’ll be back.”

“I think having a weapon pointed directly at my face has had a profound and lasting impact,” Mr Saftar’s statement continued, read aloud in court by investigating garda, Detective David Kerrigan.

He said the trauma of having a gun pulled on him - blank-firing or not - has robbed him of his sense of safety in his own community.

“I live in constant fear that something similar could happen again. I worry that the accused may retaliate or approach me in the future, especially knowing he returned once already with a weapon. I also worry for my family, as we are a family-run business, and I am deeply concerned that, if the accused is released, he could return, and the next time the situation might escalate with far more serious consequences. These concerns make it more difficult for me to fully move on.”

In addition to the pistol brought to the takeaway, Carolan was also charged with possessing two more Bruni GAP semi-automatic pistols without a licence at his home on nearby River Street.

The case prosecution was led by barrister Frank Martin, instructed by State Solicitor Fiona Baxter.

Cavan Circuit Court heard in evidence that Carolan had challenged staff to a fight before kicking the counter door and leaving to get the gun. Mr Aktar later told gardaí he believed he might be “sliced” by the defendant.

After Carolan pulled the gun from his pocket and pointed it towards staff, he quickly put it away again, made several more gestures, and left. The entire incident lasted just over 10 seconds.

When gardaí later raided Carolan’s apartment on River Street, they found him in bed. They also discovered three additional blank-firing pistols and various composite parts, including components for a Glock.

Evidence was given that Garda Tom Donnelly, a ballistics expert, examined the weapons. “These were very realistic imitations,” Det Kerrigan acknowledged.

He noted that, following his arrest, Carolan was fully co-operative. In his interview with gardaí, Carolan opened by saying: “I’ve ruined my life now.”

He “admitted everything almost immediately” and appeared to show remorse, the garda said.

Carolan told gardaí he had been “drinking heavily” - over 30 cans of cider, two bottles of wine, and cannabis.

At the time, the defendant had six previous convictions, mostly for public order offences such as using threatening or abusive behaviour, as well as one drink-driving conviction for which he received a two-year ban in 2010.

Det Kerrigan said Carolan was known to the staff he threatened, as he had regularly frequented the takeaway. He was also known to gardaí.

Carolan was represented in court by Garnet Orange SC, instructed by solicitor Ger Nevin.

Mr Orange told the court that Carolan had been living on River Street only a short time but had been in Cavan Town for about seven years. Before that, he had spent several years “couch surfing” while coping with deep-rooted alcohol issues that began when he was aged just seven years.

More ‘dangerous’ to himself

Mr Orange said his client had endured a “dysfunctional” upbringing, leaving him on the “edges of society” in adulthood. He described Carolan as “more dangerous to himself than anyone else”. The defendant had been asked by another person whilst attending AA to hold onto the weapons, receiving €200 as payment.

Mr Orange suggested the case was essentially one of “public order”, albeit involving the production of a weapon. He also referred to the probation and psychological reports, which indicated a high level of victim empathy. When asked if he understood the impact of his actions, Carolan replied: “I know what it’s like to be afraid.”

During assessment, Carolan said that he wished he had “never abused alcohol”.

In his life Carolan has entered rehabilitation eight times. He believes he is “rotten to the core” said Mr Orange, adding that Carolan does appear to be “doing well” behind bars.

A letter addressed to the judge and the injured parties was handed into court.

The judge imposed a four-year sentence in respect of the threat to kill charge, and three-and-a-half years for the weapons offence, before reducing both to a term of two and a half years each, to be served concurrently, and with time served to be taken into account.

The judge acknowledged how terrifying the ordeal must’ve been for the takeaway staff, using a gun that “looked to all intents and purposes to be a very real firearm”.

But he accepted that, within himself, Carolan had “untapped potential” and he aimed to structure the sentence in a way that encouraged further rehabilitation.

The suspended portion has conditions, that Carolan engage with the probation service post release, comply with all directions, abstain from illegal drugs and alcohol, and keep the service updated on any change in his circumstances.

All other charges on the indictment were taken into account.