Former IRA bank robber is jailed

A former IRA bank robber who shot the husband of his ex-girlfriend in Ballyfermot, Dublin, was jailed for five years by the Special…

A former IRA bank robber who shot the husband of his ex-girlfriend in Ballyfermot, Dublin, was jailed for five years by the Special Criminal Court yesterday.

The court sentenced Anthony Beggs (37) to five years' imprisonment, to date from his arrest in July. His accomplice in the shooting, Frank Nolan (37), was jailed for three years from Thursday.

The court had heard the two men confronted Mr Patrick Donohoe after they left a pub in Ballyfermot. The court heard that Beggs pointed a handgun at Mr Donohoe's head and said: "Don't look at me in the pub." A struggle ensued and Beggs then pointed the gun at Mr Donohoe's groin area and it went off, injuring him in the thigh.

Beggs, of Ballyfermot Drive, Dublin, and Nolan, of Claddagh Road, Ballyfermot, pleaded guilty to recklessly engaging in conduct which created a substantial risk of death or serious harm at Grange Cross, Ballyfermot, on December 14th, 1998.