Man jailed for role in false imprisonment

The first of a group of young men charged in connection with the terrifying false imprisonment of a man - later dumped at the gates of a local resort hotel- has been sentenced, receiving a four-year jail term, 12 months of which are suspended.

Cavan Circuit Court heard that Matthew Wilde (20), of Tailteann Drive, Windtown, Navan, Co Meath, wielded a black-handled knife and threatened to cut off Austin Denning’s finger in an act recorded for the amusement of an unnamed third party.

Mr Denning had been abducted from his Cavan Town home at Páirc an Dún on April 3, 2024, when a group of four to five males arrived outside the property. A witness described how Mr Denning was escorted from an upstairs bedroom before being bundled into the back of a silver Ford car and driven off.

Seated in the middle of the back seat, Mr Denning was flanked by two males to his right and Wilde to his left; while two other males occupied the front seats. The driver, co-accused Farouq Oluwanifemi B. Adio (22), also of Tailteann Drive, Windtown, Navan, reportedly received €50 simply to drive the group. It was claimed he had no knowledge that anyone was armed with a knife.

Both Wilde and Adio pleaded guilty at the July sittings last year to falsely imprisoning Mr Denning at an unknown Cavan location. A charge of assault causing him harm, it was agreed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, would be taken into account.

Detective Garda Sharon Walsh told the court that en route, Mr Denning was forced to issue an apology, which was recorded on mobile video, and later circulated on social media. He was then repeatedly punched, threatened by Wilde that his baby finger- or another digit- would be cut off, and that he’d do it “for fun”.

The intimidation was linked to an alleged unpaid debt and Mr Denning was asked if he was “stupid or thick” for failing to meet the repayment demands.

It was said he had borrowed €1,700 from “someone from the Congo” living in Cavan, but was being pressured to repay €4,000, either in Bitcoin or via Revolut.

At one point, another man, ‘Lorenzo’, allegedly threw the threatening knife out of the car window.

Gardaí later tracked the vehicle using CCTV, which was registered in Adio’s name.

When Wilde was interviewed, he admitted being in Cavan but denied being in the footage.

He later told gardaí that he “went with a fella doing stupid sh*t and I got dragged into it”.

The “bread knife” used to threaten Mr Denning was eventually recovered, but gardaí failed to obtain any relevant forensics.

Neither defendant had previous convictions, and Mr Denning declined to provide a victim impact statement.

Wilde, a kidney transplant recipient at age nine years, now undergoes regular dialysis, has complex medical needs, and lives on disability benefits. He was also reportedly “under the influence of drugs” at the time.

Adio, meanwhile, is a fast food chain employee and Masters student in Engineering who has since “disassociated” from his former peer group. References from a pastor and a neighbour described him as a “good Christian with Christian virtues”, someone “you could rely on”, who “learns from his missteps and tries to be better” after.

Judge Aylmer described the case as a “very serious matter”, and Wilde’s offending was placed in the mid-range, meriting six years’ imprisonment. Taking into account his guilty plea, young age, and apparent intoxication, the sentence was reduced to four years with the final 12 months suspended on condition that Wilde engage with probation services for 12 months post-release.

Adio, whose role was limited to driving, had his offending placed at the “lower end” of the scale, meriting two years behind bars. But the judge considered his “excellent” education, employment, and references, as well as his engagement with the probation services, and reduced this term to 16 months, to be served by completing 240 hours of community service within 12 months.

“You should consider yourself very fortunate,” Judge Aylmer told Adio.

A nolle prosequi was entered in respect of all outstanding counts on both indictments.