Teen with hatchet threatened to crack pensioner's skull over €50 drug debt, granted bail

A 16-year-old accused of threatening a 70-year-old woman in Athlone with a hatchet over a €50 drug debt has been granted bail by the High Court.

Athlone teenager granted High Court bail after hatchet attack on elderly pensioner

A 16-year-old boy accused of wielding a hatchet and threatening to "crack" a pensioner's skull over a €50 drug debt has been granted bail by the High Court, the Irish Times reports.

The teenager, who cannot be named due to his age, was 15 at the time of the alleged incident at a home in Athlone, Co Westmeath on August 13th. He faces charges of aggravated burglary and related offences, as well as a separate burglary of a shop in the town on the same date.

The District Court had refused bail earlier this month. That decision was appealed before High Court Judge Mícheál P O'Higgins on Thursday.

Victim gave remote evidence from her home

The 70-year-old victim, who suffers from pulmonary heart failure, participated remotely to give evidence, accompanied by her daughter. She told the court: "I am afraid." She said she feared the teenager would return to her home and that she would not have enough time to alert gardaí.

According to evidence before the court, the teenager told the woman during the incident, "I will crack your skull." He also allegedly threatened to target her daughter if the €50 debt — said to relate to her son — was not paid.

The pensioner further alleged that the youth used the hatchet to wreck her front door, causing €600 worth of damage. CCTV footage also showed him using the hatchet to smash the lights on the daughter's car.

Garda objected over witness intimidation fears

Garda Gavin Conway, questioned by Niamh Barry for the State, said he continued to fear witness intimidation if bail were granted. The application was contested on those grounds.

The court also heard that the teenager had been "immersed" in drug use for the past year. Despite being provided with care accommodation at various locations previously, he had left six different placements on 60 separate occasions.

The teenager told the court his own father carried a €50,000 drug debt and that he had been helping to repay it. Garda Conway did not accept that account.

Defence offered supervised accommodation in different county

Defence counsel Keith Branagan argued that alternative accommodation with support staff, located in a different county, was available. He submitted that the arrangement would function as an "early warning system" — authorities would be notified immediately if the youth left the property unaccompanied.

Judge: case is extremely serious, but bail terms sufficient

Judge O'Higgins acknowledged that people are entitled to feel safe in their homes and should not be subjected to attacks by someone armed with a hatchet. He described the case as extremely serious and noted the boy had been somewhat out of control.

Weighing the gravity of the charges, the strength of the evidence, and the proposed conditions, the judge said he had been "just about persuaded" that bail was appropriate subject to strict terms. The teenager was released from the Oberstown Children Detention Campus and warned to comply with conditions that include a ban on leaving his accommodation unaccompanied.

The teen, who has yet to enter a plea, is due to appear before Athlone District Court on September 9th, when directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions will be conveyed.

Source: Irish Times