Man convicted of running over ex-girlfriend’s boss
A Dublin man has been convicted of running over his ex-girlfriend’s employer causing him to lose a foot.
Joseph Cullen (aged 42) beat the man and hit him twice with a car after chasing him from his former partner’s home.
The victim, a managing director of the ex-girlfriend’s company, later lost his foot as a result.
Cullen claimed to gardaí that he was still going out with Ms Jackie White when the incident happened, despite her evidence that they had broken up several weeks previously.
He claimed he arrived at the house and saw Ms White and her employer kissing on the couch but denied assaulting him.
Cullen of Adare Avenue, Coolock had pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm and causing serious harm to Mr Kevin Byrne on March 8, 2008 at St Helena’s Road, Finglas.
He was found guilty by a jury on the serious harm charge after two and a half hours of deliberation after a five-day trial.
Judge Patrica Ryan thanked the jury of seven men and five women for their time and attention and remanded Cullen in custody until sentencing later this month.
Mr Byrne gave evidence that he was at a work night out and was sharing a taxi home with two fellow employees. The taxi dropped one of the employees home while he and Ms White continued on to her house.
Mr Byrne told prosecuting counsel, Mr Sean Guerin BL, that he wanted to use the bathroom so he went into Ms White’s house and the taxi drove off. Ms White then said that she was going upstairs to use the bathroom and he sat downstairs.
Shortly after there were two loud bangs at the front door and Ms White came down the stairs. Cullen entered the house, looked at Mr Byrne and roared. Ms White told her ex-boyfriend: “it’s only Kevin from work”.
Cullen then went into the kitchen and opened a cutlery drawer while Ms White followed and shouted: “No Joey, run Kevin”.
Mr Byrne ran out of the house and down the road, hearing the man chasing him, shouting: “I’m going to get you”.
He continued running until he was hit by a car which sent him rolling down a hill. At the bottom of the hill a car pulled up and three men, including Cullen got out and started to beat him.
They punched and kicked him for “a long time” and chipped his tooth before he was able to get up and run away again.
After a short distance he was struck again by the car which flipped him into he air. He said when he landed on the ground his legs were underneath the car and it felt like his right leg was not there.
The three men got out and Mr Byrne pleaded with them to not attack. One of the men said “he’s had enough” and they got in the car and drove away. Mr Byrne later had to undergo eight operations including one to amputate his right foot.
Ms White gave evidence that she was very drunk on the night and remembered little. She said the only thing she recalls is Cullen coming in the front door. She said they had split up around six weeks before and she had not seen him for two weeks.
Ms White said she remembers Mr Byrne running out of the house and Cullen running after him.
“It’s just all so blurry, I can’t remember,” she told Mr Guerin. She said the next thing she recalled was waking up the following morning. She said that the assault was a “complete shock” to her.
The trial also heard a transcript of Cullen’s garda interviews in which he claims he caught the pair in an embrace. He said he chased Mr Byrne to the front door but no further and that he then spent the night with Ms White.
He told garda Ms White was lying to save her job and because she did not want to seem like a “tramp”.
