Leitrim man who set fire to three houses given prison sentence

A 22-year-old man who set fire to three unoccupied and vacant houses in Kinlough was convicted and sentenced to five and a half years in prison with the final two years suspended.

Appearing before Carrick-on-Shannon Circuit Court last week was Jake Farrell, 7 St Aidan's Court, Kinlough, Co Leitrim, on a plea of guilty to arson at two vacant houses, numbers 59 and 80, Forest Park, Kinlough, Co Leitrim, and another vacant property at The Lane, Kinlough, all on May 7, 2020.

The court heard the fire damage to the two houses in the Forest Park estate, which was described as a ghost estate, was over €351,000. The other house had been vacant for 20 years.

Sgt Declan Guckian outlined the case on behalf of investigating officer, Detective Garda Mark Benson.
He told the court Detective Benson wanted to impress on the court that Mr Farrell, who was 19 at the time, was going through a highly stressful time in his life and he fully understood the reasons why Mr Farrell was so stressed.

He had quite a tough upbringing in his youth and had come through the court system previously.
He has two previous convictions for criminal damage and public order offences in 2019.

Mr Farrell has come to garda attention since and a number of charges are due to come before the courts, including 11 theft and fraud offences, two public order offences, one charge of assault causing harm, one of producing an article, a knife, in the course of a dispute, and another for the breach of a barring or safety order.

Sgt Guckian said all those alleged offences occurred subsequent to the offences before the Circuit Court.
Colm Smyth SC, instructed by Gerard McGovern, solicitor, said Mr Farrell has spent most of his younger life in foster care and has been on his own again since age 18.

He said his father was a drug addict and his mother an alcoholic and he came out as gay and this led to a violent row with his family who found it very hard to accept. He received a beating which was captured on CCTV and the guards were called.

Mr Smyth said the assault causing harm charge was against his brother and was actually dealt with at Sligo Circuit Criminal Court. The other matters were before the district court and were adjourned last week to be dealt with following the outcome of this case in Carrick-on-Shannon.

Mr Smyth said the defendant had gone on a binge of trouble-making at the time but is back on track now. He is working full time and living in an apartment in Donegal.

He is off drugs and has turned his life around and has taken a significant step in the right direction.
Jake Farrell said he was in foster care from the age of four and again from age 10 to 18 as his grandmother was too old to care for him.

He got into bother through drugs and theft matters. The altercation was with his brother Morgan. He cut the top of his finger with a kitchen knife.

He said he has worked with his most recent foster mother who he said has taken a deep interest in his life and he became a better person because of her and is staying out of trouble.

“I done too much at a young age and I'm 100% sure I'm not going to go back to that,” he said.
He added that he has two daughters aged two and three who stay with him every weekend.

Mr Smyth said Mr Farrell had shown a firm intention to put his life on the right track and is free of drink and drugs.
Judge Aylmer adjourned sentencing for one day to reflect on the submissions.
On the resumption of the case, Judge Aylmer said Mr Farrell pleaded to two counts of arson at houses 59 and 80 in Forest Park, Kinlough.

He said the two houses were in a ghost estate and the cost of repairs to the houses was estimated by the owner to be €331,503.24.
He said there was some issue taken by the defence as there was no quantity surveyor's report. However, it was clear the damage to the two properties was very extensive and significant.

The third property at The Lane, Kinlough, was another vacant property. He said it was a relatively old two storey house and there was no estimate of the cost of repairs but it was clear from the photos in court that the damage was extensive.

Judge Aylmer said arson is a very serious offence and the maximum sentence at the highest end of the scale is life in prison.
Prior to mitigation, he said these offences must be regarded as well into the medium range.

He said Mr Farrell went on what might be regarded as “a spree” and caused extensive damage.
Judge Aylmer said the appropriate sentence was eight years on each count, to run concurrently, taking into account the totality of the offences.

Judge Aylmer said the offences were committed after he had just come out as gay and following a beating from his mother which was witnessed and recorded by a neighbour. He said that incident might have had some bearing on the mind of the accused. He said his long term drug use was also a factor.

However, Judge Aylmer said the probation report before the court was in stark contrast to Mr Farrell's counsel that he is drug free and noted that he still uses cannabis.

The judge said the court accepted the evidence of Detective Garda Benson that he was going through a very difficult time and had a lot on his plate. He had a very difficult upbringing, had been in foster care and migrated towards a negative peer group and intoxication from drugs and alcohol.

In mitigation, he said he was only 19 at the time, there was an absence of significant previous convictions, he had cooperated with the investigation, and entered an early guilty plea.

The judge remarked that Mr Farrell had made a considerable effort in his rehabilitation and had engaged positively with the Probation Service. On order from Sligo Circuit Court he has completed a number of courses. He has gained full time employment and has access to his daughters every weekend. He said this was all very positive and had to be encouraged.
Judge Aylmer reduced the sentence to 5½ years on each count, to run concurrently.

He said the court took the view with regard to the necessity for a significant general deterrent and said there had to be a significant custodial sentence.
He suspended the final two years of the sentence, on Mr Farrell's own bond of €100, for a period of two years from the date of his release.

He said Mr Farrell will remain under the supervision of the Probation Service during that time and must abstain from alcohol and unprescribed drugs and comply with all instructions of the Probation Service and engage with local mental health services, keeping the Probation Service advised in relation to all relevant matters.