12-year-old boy beat man in head with pole during car jacking, court hears
A then 12-year-old Dublin boy accused of repeatedly beating a man to the head and body with a metal pole during a car hi-jacking has been remanded in custody,
The boy, now aged 13, who cannot be named because he is a minor, is charged with unlawfully seizing and taking control of a 04’reg Ford Fiesta by force and being armed with a large metal pole during the incident in a residential area in Tallaght, in Dublin last August.
The case was before the Dublin Children’s Court again on Thursday to see if he has agreed to be part of a special bail supervision scheme with support from care workers. Judge John O’Connor noted the teenager’s mother was willing to co-operate with the programme however her son completely refused to be involved.
The judge said the teenager has also broken bail terms on several occasions. He remanded the boy in custody to appear again next week.
The teen’s mother was visibly upset and wept as said she had concerns her son. She asked for a psychiatric assessment and the judge agreed to request that one would be carried out.
The boy sat motionless and remained silent during most of the hearing and spoke only once at the end when he hugged his mother and quietly told her he loved her.
A decision has yet to be made as to whether the boy will be tried in the juvenile court or in a circuit court which has tougher sentencing powers.
Giving a summary of the prosecution evidence, Garda David Morris has said the alleged hi-jacking happened at about 8.15pm after a 22-year-old man drove into a residential estate. A male friend of the same age and two 17-year-old girls were also travelling in the car.
It was alleged the Ford Fiesta was stopped and confronted by a large group of youths including the accused. One of the boy’s friends punched the driver and his car keys were taken, the court heard.
The driver attempted to retrieve his keys at which point it is alleged the boy “approached with a very large metal bar and began hitting him a number of times”.
The court heard that the man was beaten on the head, chest, back and neck by the boy. The man and his passengers fled as the group of youths surrounded the car and then drove it away at speed, it is alleged.
The boy was a passenger in the Ford Fiesta when it was driven away, Gda Morris said.
It was recovered at 11pm that night “after being smashed up and badly damaged”, Judge John O’Connor was told. The boy, who has not yet indicated how he will plead, was arrested on a later date and interviewed by gardai.
Judge O’Connor has deferred ruling on the trial venue issue saying it was too serious to decide at this stage. He has made an order of disclosure of prosecution evidence to the defence which can make submissions pleading for the juvenile court to accept jurisdiction by citing the age, level of maturity and any other relevant evidence.
The bail conditions stated he had to obey a 9pm to 7am curfew at his home and not interfere with witnesses or the injured party in the case. Evidence was given that he had broken the curfew condition on several occasions over recent months leading to the judge giving warnings to the boy at previous hearings that he risked being remanded in custody if it continued.
