Career criminal's fate sealed when spotted by gardai

Mr Chawke was leaving the Goat Grill, Goatstown, on the morning of October 6th, 2003, when Cummins and his accomplice struck. As the publican was about to pull on to the road with
over €48,000 in takings, he looked in his mirror and saw a man running towards him with a
shotgun.

The next few moments were to cost Mr Chawke his right leg and Cummins 15 years of his life. The gunman shouted at Mr Chawke to hand over the money. With the driver's door of his
Silver Mercedes still open Chawke saw an opportunity to grab the gun. But as he lunged for it he fell out of his car and on to the pavement. The next words he heard were chilling. "I'll f*****g
sort you out," said the gunman as he pointed his loaded pump action shotgun at Mr Chawke's leg and pulled the trigger, wounding him in the knee.

As Mr Chawke lay shocked and  in excruciating pain, the gunman simply stepped over him and grabbed the bag of takings. He ran back to the getaway car where Cummins, also armed with
a shotgun, was waiting to speed from the scene. 

The four Dundrum-based gardaí in the passing patrol car had other ideas. Two of them, Garda Nigel Bourke and Garda Dave Sweeney, ran to the raiders' car.

Garda Bourke, now based in Blackrock, grabbed the gunman's clothes and pulled him away from the getaway vehicle. The gunman, who has not been tried yet and so cannot be named,
shouted at Cummins: "Shoot the c**t". Cummins - a career criminal with 65 convictions, some for armed crime - pointed his gun to Garda Bourke's head and told him to back away. The getaway car, a red Volkswagen Polo, then sped off. But as it did Garda Sweeney took his baton out and broke the back window.

The two gardaí ran back to the patrol car where their two female colleagues, Det Sgt Michelle Gettings and student Garda Kealan O'Keeffe, were waiting. Det Sgt Gettings was driving and had the car ready to chase the raiders.

A high-speed chase ensued across south Dublin with Cummins keeping his shotgun pointed at the chasing gardaí. The raiders got as far as Upper Kilmacud Road and turned into the Stillorgan Heath estate only to find it is a warren of culs de sac. They were forced to stop at a
dead end and ran from the car. Cummins's accomplice fired at the Garda car, hitting it. However, as school children looked on, the four gardaí chased and caught the raiders. The two shotguns
and a bag of money were recovered a short distance away.

Yesterday after Cummins was sentenced Mr Chawke told The Irish Times he was pleased with the outcome saying it represented "part closure" for him. "It was a frightening experience,"
he said of his shooting. "I was lying on the ground with a massive hole in my knee pouring blood just praying that the ambulance would get there in time to save my life. Thankfully it
did. They gave me 42 units of blood in St Vincent's. The doctor told me I had virtually no blood
left in my system, literally nothing."

While he had adapted to losing his right leg the loss of the limb had slowed him down. "I can't work in the bar anymore, which I loved, because I'd just be in everybody's way. But I have good staff and I get on with life and try to look on the bright side."