Ireland Man pleads guilty to obstruction after swallowing tablets and running from gardaí in Kildare
A man in his 30s became anxious upon seeing gardaí in County Kildare and swallowed tablets that were on his person, then ran away before being chased and caught. He pleaded guilty to an obstruction offence at Naas District Court on 22 February 2024, where his solicitor Brian Larkin told Judge Desmond Zaidan that the man was a recovering heroin addict weaning off methadone and struggling with mental health. The man, who has had no legal trouble since 2016 and had four gastric implants inserted in England to prevent drug use, was described as more of a danger to himself than to the public. Judge Zaidan applied the Probation Act to his case.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In courtnot reported
- Verdictnot reported
- Sentenced28 Feb
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- The man became anxious upon seeing gardaí, swallowed tablets that were on his person, then ran away before being chased and caught.
- Where
- The obstruction offence was committed in County Kildare.
- When
- The man appeared at Naas District Court on 22 February 2024.
- Charges
- The man pleaded guilty to an obstruction offence.
- In court
- Judge Desmond Zaidan presided, with Brian Larkin representing the man and Garda Sergeant David Hanrahan present in the courthouse.
- Sentence
- Judge Zaidan applied the Probation Act to the man's case.
- Other details
- The man is a recovering heroin addict weaning off methadone with the aid of medical professionals and struggles with mental health and sleeping issues.
- He has had no legal trouble since 2016 and went to England to have four implants inserted into his stomach to prevent drug use.
- The man was not violent at the time of the incident and was described as more of a danger to himself than to members of the public.
15 statements extracted from the articles
- whatHe became anxious upon seeing gardaí and swallowed tablets that were on his person (kildarenow.com)
- whatHe ran away and gardaí chased and caught him (kildarenow.com)
- chargeThe man pleaded guilty to an obstruction offence committed in County Kildare (kildarenow.com)
- courtHe appeared before Judge Desmond Zaidan at Naas District Court on 22 February 2024 (kildarenow.com)
- courtBrian Larkin represented the man in court (kildarenow.com)
- courtGarda Sergeant David Hanrahan was present in the courthouse (kildarenow.com)
- sentenceJudge Zaidan applied the Probation Act to the man's case (kildarenow.com)
- otherHe is a recovering heroin addict weaning off methadone with the aid of medical professionals (kildarenow.com)
- otherHe struggles with mental health and sleeping issues (kildarenow.com)
- otherHe has not been in legal trouble since 2016 (kildarenow.com)
- otherHe went to England to get four implants inserted into his stomach to prevent drug use (kildarenow.com)
- otherHe first started taking drugs at age 21 (kildarenow.com)
- otherThe first drug he ever took was weed (kildarenow.com)
- otherThe man was not violent at the time of the incident (kildarenow.com)
- otherThe man was more of a danger to himself than to members of the public (kildarenow.com)
The reporting
newest first- 28 Feb2024Man ‘panicked’ when he saw gardaí so he swallowed tablets, Kildare court told
Court hearing in which the man pleaded guilty; the judge applied the Probation Act and discussed the man's drug addiction history, mental health struggles and gastric implants.
convicted, 30s, male