A jury has begun deliberating in the trial of a builder accused of trying to get a woman into his car in the middle of the night by pretending to be a garda and intimidating her.
Declan McGowan (33) of Branswood, Athy, Co Kildare, has pleaded not guilty to attempting to coerce Andra Calauz on the Kimmage Road in Dublin city on the night of September 18th last year.
He has also pleaded not guilty to assaulting her by kissing and hugging her, impersonating a member of An Garda Síochána and assaulting her husband Daniel Ion, causing him harm.
On day three of the trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, Judge Patricia Ryan charged the jury on the law before sending them out just after lunchtime to begin deliberations.
After a little under two hours of deliberations, she sent the jury home for the weekend. Deliberations will resume on Monday morning.
Ms Calauz told the trial that at around 2.30am she was walking alone on the Kimmage Rd Lower in Dublin city. She was having an argument with her husband on a video call on her mobile phone when the defendant pulled his car up beside her.
'Garda'
She said this man told her he was a garda and told her to get into his car. She said he told her she was beautiful, kissed her hand, and hugged her.
Her husband Daniel Ion testified that he came down to his wife and the defendant began choking him with one hand, told him he was a garda and that his wife was coming with him.
Mr Ion told the jury that Mr McGowan said he had a gun in his car. Her husband contacted gardaí, who arrived within minutes.
Mr McGowan told gardaí that the woman had told him she was in danger from her husband and he told her he would bring her to a Garda station. He said that he only restrained Mr Ion after Mr Ion struck the woman.
Under cross-examination, both Mr Ion and his wife separately denied this account of events.
Mr McGowan said he never told anyone he was a garda and said this may have been a misunderstanding because of a “massive language barrier”.
Defending counsel Garnet Orange SC told the jury that the only thing his client did wrong was to make a foolish decision to act “the good Samaritan”.
“He made the critical mistake of placing himself between a husband and wife,” counsel said.
John Moher BL, prosecuting, said that Mr McGowan's account was fantastical. He said that when the defendant's efforts to get the woman into his car were interrupted by her husband's appearance, “he flew into a rage” and assaulted the man.
