'Out of his mind' burglar who fell asleep during break-in gets three years

A Wexford burglar was so intoxicated that he fell asleep on the homeowner's bed after piling up the items he intended to steal, a court has heard.

'Out of his mind' burglar who fell asleep during break-in gets three years

A Wexford burglar was so intoxicated that he fell asleep on the homeowner's bed after piling up the items he intended to steal, a court has heard.

Michael McDermott (aged 43) was still sleeping in the box room when the homeowner son's saw that the house had been broken into. This man and his brother then dragged McDermott out of the house into the front garden before gardaí arrived.

Garda Richard Carroll said McDermott was so intoxicated he had concerns for his welfare and an ambulance was called. The burglar had also cut himself when gaining entry to the house having smashed a front window.

McDermott of Tomagaddy, Ballycanew, Gorey, Co Wexford pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to burglary of the house in Coolock, Dublin on January 23, 2016. He has 95 previous convictions including assault causing harm, burglary, robbery and drug offences.

Judge Melanie Greally jailed McDermott for three years. She accepted that he had taken a large number of tablets before breaking into the house and said it was apparent to gardaí that he was so intoxicated he needed medical treatment.

Gda Carroll told Fiona Murphy BL, prosecuting that McDermott spent a night in hospital and was arrested almost two weeks later for questioning.

He admitted during interview that he had taken tablets that day in his mother's home and had a row with her when he was caught trying to light a fire in his bedroom. He left there before wandering around and breaking into the house in Coolock.

He said he got in through a window before looking around and “putting some stuff together”. He used the toilet before falling asleep on a bed upstairs.

McDermott said he had been in “a bad way” and could barely remember what he was doing that day.

Gda Carroll agreed with Diarmuid Collins BL, defending that McDermott was described by the home-owner's sons as being “out of his mind”. He accepted that he had injured himself when gaining access and had later apologised to the victims during interview.

Mr Collins told Judge Greally that his client had a difficult upbringing as both his parents had alcohol problems. He was used by an older person to “move drugs around Dublin” while he was still a child.

Counsel said McDermott started using cannabis at nine years old and was taking heroin at 15. He had a 30-year drug addiction that he managed to beat in 2013 and moved to Manchester where he stayed drug free.

Mr Collins said that McDermott came back to Ireland some time later when his father died, re-engaged with his old peer group and then started abusing drugs and committing crime again.

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