A Polish man who was caught red-handed with another man stealing €3,000 worth of jewellery from a house in Annaghdown last June, has been jailed for seven months following his appearance before Galway District Court this week.
Marcin Jawor (25 ), with a former address at 3 Waggots Lane, off Dominick Street, pleaded guilty to entering a premises at Barranny, Annaghdown, as a trespasser on June 25 last to commit a theft.
Inspector Sean Glynn said Jawor and co-accused Grzegorz Malik (20 ), no fixed abode,entered a vacant house between 10.30 and 11 a.m. on June 25 last. When the owner, William Scully, arrived at the house he was confronted by the pair. They fled through the kitchen window at the side of the house and ran down a narrow lane way beside the house.
A Garda helicopter was brought to the Annaghdown area to assist Gardai and local people in a search operation. The robbers were caught a short time later and €3,000 worth of jewellery, which had been taken from the house, was also recovered.
Inspector Glynn said Jawor made a full and frank admission of his involvement in the robbery when interviewed and he had no previous convictions.
He informed the court that co-accused, Grzegorz Malik, had received a seven-month sentence for his part in the crime in September.
Defence solicitor Olivia Traynor said her client resorted to this type of crime when he lost his job. She said he had been in Ireland for two years beforehand and his partner was expecting a baby in the next couple of weeks.
Judge Mary Fahy said burglary had to be treated seriously as it was a very serious offence. She said she would treat Jawor in the same way as his co-accused and she imposed a seven-month sentence on him as well. Leave to appeal was granted.
