A Dublin man described as “a loner” after being charged with threatening to kill Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald in a viral social media video has lodged a fresh High Court bail application.
Richard McGreevy, 28, of Whitechurch Place, Rathfarnham, is accused of making threats to kill or cause serious harm to the Sinn Féin leader.
The offence allegedly occurred on July 16th at his home.
He was refused bail in the District Court on July 19th and was remanded in custody, but a new application was initiated in the High Court in Cloverhill, Dublin.
The case was listed on Tuesday but did not proceed, and it has been put back for a week.
The prosecution follows a complaint by Ms McDonald after footage of a man in a balaclava was shared on social media platforms.
Officers from the Special Detective Unit (SDU), which investigates subversive, terrorist and organised crime and threats to the State, arrested him at his south Dublin home.
Detective Sergeant Gareth Kane told his District Court hearing that Mr McGreevy “made no reply” to the charge.
The detective sergeant objected to bail based on witness intimidation or interference concerns. On conviction, the offence carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence, the court heard.
According to the SDU officer, the evidence in the case was strong. He said gardaí had seized all devices used to post the video. Admissions were said to have been made in Garda custody.
Cross-examined by defence solicitor Kevin Tunney, it was likely that the case would be sent forward to the Circuit Court.
The solicitor had said his client had memory problems, and Detective Sergeant Kane agreed with Mr Tunney when he stated his client was “a young man who had a difficult childhood”.
The solicitor told the court Mr McGreevy’s father died when he was a child, and his mother abandoned him when he was aged three, and the garda said, “I believe it was chaotic”.
The defence solicitor submitted that his client had two dogs which had to go into a pound; he also told the court his client was in social housing, which he could lose if he went into custody for a lengthy period.
He argued that his client could be subject to conditions, sign on daily at a garda station and stay off social media.
Asked if that would ease his fears, Detective Sergeant Kane said, “No, but it is in the court’s hands,” and he did not alter his objection to bail.
Detective Sergeant Kane claimed the accused “broadcast on TikTok that he was going to kill a TD, and he incited violence against the commissioner of the garda and other gardai”.
Mr Tunney suggested his client was “a loner”, and Detective Sergeant Kane agreed that he was not a member of any organisation or gang.
