A man who pleaded guilty to destroying Victorian gravestone monuments dating from 1835 at Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin, worth €100,000, has been remanded on continuing bail until sentencing on April 18th, next.
Brian O'Connell (18), of Doolinstown, Trim, changed his plea to guilty following legal argument in his Dublin Circuit Criminal Court trial. O'Connell earlier pleaded not guilty to five counts of unlawful use of a mechanical digger and criminal damage of the digger, a lawnmower, a tractor and 48 gravestone monuments at Glasnevin Cemetery on February 17th, 2003.
The jury was earlier told by prosecuting counsel, Ms Mary Rose Gearty BL, that staff arrived at the cemetery on February 18th, 2003, and found a mechanical digger had been driven through it and a large number of monuments had been overturned and destroyed.
She read a statement from Mr George McCullough, chief executive of the Dublin Cemeteries Committee, who said the cemetery had been locked by security staff on the evening in question and he was made aware of the damage the next morning.
He said a mechanical digger had been used as a "battering ram" to smash 48 monuments.
The monuments dated from 1835 and were described by Mr McCullough as, "some of the finest examples of Victorian sculpture and stone masonry in the world today". He estimated the damaged caused to be €100,000.
The jury also heard the digger, used to dig graves, had been crashed at the rear of the cemetery and sustained €16,000 worth of damage. More than €1,000 in damage was also done to a lawnmower and tractor.
The owner of the digger, Mr Frank Fanning, a civil engineering contractor, said in a statement that the person who started the machine would have had a good knowledge of such vehicles.
Judge Yvonne Murphy thanked the jury and excused them from further service for three years. She ordered a Probation and Welfare Service report to be compiled for O'Connell's April 18th sentence date.