A man looking for divine intervention in his search for work was fined at Galway District Court this week for obstructing passers by with a picture of Jesus.
Sebestian Stancu (32 ) with an address at 27 Scholar’s Walk, Lusk village, Fingal, Co Dublin, appeared before Judge Mary Fahy on Monday and pleaded guilty to obstructing the passage of persons or vehicles, contrary to Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Public Order ) Act 2011, at Whitehall, Abbeygate Street, on August 5, 2011.
The court heard that at 2.45pm gardai received a call regarding a person who was causing annoyance to passers by. Gardai arrived at the scene where they found the defendant holding a picture of Jesus and showing it to people as they were going in and out of a nearby shopping centre thereby obstructing them as they were going about their business. He was subsequently arrested.
Defence solicitor Adrian MacLynn explained that his client, a Romanian national who has been in the country for five years and is married with two children, had been visiting Galway.
When Judge Fahy enquired why Stancu was in Galway, the defendant said: “I was looking for work.”
“You think you’re going to get work by sitting at a shopping centre showing holy pictures?” asked Judge Fahy, to which Mr MacLynn quipped: “Perhaps he was hoping for divine intervention.”
“No, he was hoping for some fools to give him money. He could have got divine intervention in Dublin,” said Judge Fahy.
Mr MacLynn then told the court that Stancu is unemployed, that he sells the Big Issue, and is earnestly seeking work.
Stancu was then convicted and fined €200 with five months to pay plus a one month sentence suspended for 12 months on condition that he enter into a bond of €300 to be of good behaviour and to stay away from Galway city and county during the period of the suspension. Leave to appeal was granted.
