A man who assaulted five passengers in a series of unprovoked attacks on the C4 bus route from Dublin to Celbridge has been jailed for two years at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Jaroslow Kilian (39) of Cloverhill Prison, Dublin, was the subject of a deportation order and should not have been in Ireland when he randomly attacked several bus passengers on August 21st last year.
At a hearing on Thursday, the court heard he slapped, punched and kicked several passengers, causing concussion to two people and lasting PTSD to a woman, before threatening to kill gardaí, who arrived to arrest him.
Kilian pleaded guilty to two counts of assault causing harm and one count of assault, with a further three counts taken into consideration after the driver of the bus pulled over at the entrance to the Western Aerodrome on Celbridge Road in Lucan on the day in question.
One of the victims, who was punched full force in the face by Kilian after she tried to hide from him, continues to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and remains afraid to leave her house.
In a victim impact statement read out on her behalf, the woman said the attack has changed her life, and she can no longer use public transport. “I have lost my confidence. I have constant nightmares, panic attacks, anxiety attacks and headaches. PTSD is ruining my mind,” said the woman.
Kilian, a Polish national who suffers from schizophrenia, was highly intoxicated on the day, the court heard.
On his arrest at the scene, Kilian told gardaí his name was James Bond and gave his address as “The General Office, Underground”.
Illegally in Ireland
He had been the subject of an exclusion order issued by the Minister for Justice and deported in December 2021 but returned illegally to Ireland two months later in February 2022.
“He wasn’t supposed to be in Ireland. He shouldn’t have been on the bus,” said Judge Orla Crowe, noting that Kilian could not have been unaware that he was the subject of an exclusion order.
Judge Crowe said the whole series of events had been “utterly unprovoked and unnecessary” and that each attack represented a very serious violation of personal autonomy.
She said Kilian had been “misbehaving from the off” by making inappropriate sexual remarks to girls on the bus and noted the very serious and lasting impact of the attack on the woman who made a victim impact statement.
“He constituted a real threat to public safety and public order,” said Judge Crowe.
She set a headline sentence of three years but reduced this on account of mitigating factors, including Kilian’s severe and enduring mental illness, for which he is now being treated.
The court heard that Kilian wrote a short letter of apology to the victims and another to the court, which he disrupted during a previous appearance.
The sentence was backdated to August 27th last year, when Kilian went into custody.
Vulgar remarks
Garda Michael Russell told Shaun Smyth BL, prosecuting, that the accused man got onto the bus at Aston Quay in Dublin.
He was heard talking loudly on the phone and making vulgar remarks to female passengers before he started to slap and punch an Asian man sitting at the back of the bus, culminating in a loud crunch. This victim left his seat and got off the bus – he has not been identified by gardaí.
An Irishman then got on the bus and sat beside Kilian before seeming to become afraid and attempting to leave his seat. The accused then punched this man down the stairs, then pulled him back up and forced him to sit at the front. This victim was also not identified.
Danesh Ramesh, another passenger, became concerned for his girlfriend as Kilian approached her and told her to go downstairs. As Mr Ramesh tried to follow her, Kilian kicked him in the back of his head, causing him to lose his balance, fall down the stairs and hit his head.
Mr Ramesh didn’t give a victim impact statement but told gardaí he felt very afraid and in pain. The court heard he suffered a concussion and blurred vision, for which he attended Connolly Memorial Hospital.
The bus driver then pulled over at Mr Ramesh’s request and called the guards. The driver also opened all the doors to allow passengers to alight for their safety.
Kilian then indiscriminately approached various passengers challenging them to fight, hitting one man.
Punched woman in face
A woman who was one of the last passengers to get off tried to hide from Kilian, but he came straight up to her and punched her full force in the nose and forehead, knocking her to the ground. She passed out and later told gardaí she felt her head was going to come off her shoulders.
One witness said the punch was so powerful that everyone heard it, and the woman had fallen straight to the floor.
Another victim saw Kilian demanding that two young girls give him their phones and intervened, telling him to go home. Kilian responded by grabbing two of the fixed bars on the bus and kicking this man hard in the stomach. When this victim got off the bus, Kilian punched him hard in the nose.
Garda Russell said Kilian was aggressive and evidently intoxicated when they arrived, shouting and showing closed fists. He immediately charged at two gardaí, necessitating the use of force to bring him down.
On his arrest and while being restrained, Kilian said: “I will kill you guys. I will break you f***ers. I will kill all of you. I will beat all of you on this bus.”
Previous convictions
He has 27 previous convictions in this jurisdiction, including drugs and theft offences, assault, criminal damage and possession of stolen property.
Kevin McCrave BL, defending, said Kilian was assessed and treated for schizophrenia while in custody in 2021 but that it took some time to find the correct medication for him.
Mr McCrave said his client tended to take medication for a time and then, when he felt better, would stop taking it as he felt he didn’t need it.
Counsel said Killian identified himself as Jesus Christ when presenting himself to the hospital last year. Kilian has been on the correct medication since last November, the court heard.
Counsel said Kilian instructed that he had been taking a selfie with a man on the bus when the man touched him, and he became violent.
He said his client had come to Ireland in 2005 and had worked as a chef in many places, including in Tipperary and the Guinness Hop Store.
Kilian has expressed genuine remorse and understands not to take alcohol or drugs which seem to trigger his offending, the court heard.
The sentence was backdated to August 27th last, when Kilian was taken into custody on this matter.
