A 48-year-old Lettermullen man has promised to stay off social media after being charged with threatening to kill or cause serious harm to the Taoiseach and his family.
Patrick Grealish of Garrai Corcaí, Lettermullen, Co Galway, was arrested by gardaí on Sunday morning as part of the investigation into online threats made against Simon Harris.
He will appear again in court on September 17. The accused was brought before Judge Gerard Furlong at a special sitting of Galway District Court on Monday afternoon.
He was led into the court building by gardaí and covered his face with his coat hood as he was brought in. Detective Sergeant Eamonn O’Neill, of the Special Detective Unit, gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution. He said Mr Grealish replied “no thanks” when the charge was put to him.
The defendant is accused of making a threat to kill or cause serious harm to the Taoiseach and his family at a location within the State on August 4.
The detective said he was objecting to bail on a number of grounds, including that the serious offence related to a member of Government, with gardaí taking it “very seriously”.
The maximum penalty for the offence, under Section 5 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997, on conviction is a 10-year jail term.
Det Sgt O’Neill also said that the accused was caught red-handed with the device allegedly used to send the offending message. Under cross examination he accepted that the defendant was cooperative.
The defence solicitor said that his client is a carer for his mother and also has his own health issues. Det Sgt O’Neill said that a guarantee by Mr Grealish to stay off social media would alleviate some of his concerns.
He also asked that any bail conditions include staying away from the Taoiseach, his family, and having no direct or indirect contact with them.
Giving evidence in the bail hearing, the defendant said when asked if he would stay off social media: “Absolutely your honour. I promise”.
Judge Furlong said the accused had the presumption of innocence and noted that gardaí had no concerns about Mr Grealish not turning up for court.
He remanded the accused on bail, on a number of strict conditions which include staying off social media, and he will appear in court again on September 17.
