A man who threatened the manager of a McDonald's restaurant with a broken bottle during a robbery has been handed a two-and-a-half year prison sentence.
Anthony Bradley (28) of West End Village, Blanchardstown, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to a charge of robbery at McDonalds, Blanchardstown Centre, on January 17th, 2020.
Judge Melanie Greally imposed a sentence of three and a half years on Wednesday with the final 12 months suspended on the condition he enter a bond to keep the peace.
She said while this is the defendant's first robbery offence, it had included a threat of serious violence.
Victim genuinely fearful
Referring to the victim impact statement, Judge Greally said the victim had been “genuinely fearful” at the time and still suffers from anxiety that something similar could happen while at work.
Judge Greally described the robbery as “drugs fuelled”, and said Bradley's offending was linked to his drugs addiction.
She noted that Bradley had previously demonstrated motivation to deal with his addiction and had taken positive steps to do so.
Bradley has 42 previous convictions, including convictions for assault, theft and possession of drugs for sale or supply.
Pieter Le Vert BL, defending, said Bradley had been a witness to a violent incident as a child. He did not have a father figure and several family members died while he was a teenager.
Bradley started to use drugs including cannabis, cocaine, and alcohol as a teenager.
Relapse
He completed a residential treatment programme in 2018. Bradley later suffered a relapse, and is aware that he must address his addiction issues.
He is the father of one and wants to be there for his family.
Mr Le Vert said it had been “devastating” for Bradley to have come so far and lose everything, but he is determined to deal with these issues.
At a previous sitting, Detective Garda Stuart Gleeson told Eoin Lawlor BL, prosecuting, that on the night in question, Bradley approached the counter of the McDonalds and asked for a drink, which the manager agreed to give him despite his not having money.
Broken bottle
Det Gda Gleeson said Bradley then ordered and paid for a hamburger, though he said he wanted a refund because the drink was not on the receipt. He then produced a broken bottle and told the manager to give him money from the till.
The manager gave him about €40 and he left the restaurant. Gardaí were called, and they recognised Bradley on CCTV footage and knew he was due to appear before Blanchardstown District Court.
After his arrest Bradley told gardaí he wanted to “sincerely apologise”. He said this was not the way he was brought up and that “addiction has a way of turning people into a monster”.
Bradley told gardaí he had been clean of drugs for years, but had relapsed six weeks earlier. He said the money he stole was used to purchase crack cocaine.
Det Gda Gleeson agreed with Mr Le Vert that his client was in McDonalds for 10 minutes prior to the offence trying to “screw up his courage”. He agreed Bradley agreed to go into custody to treat his addiction, but was released in March 2020 to undertake a residential drugs treatment programme.
Mr Le Vert said the defendant had completed the programme and started work, but neglected his recovery because he was determined to provide for his family.
Bradley had re-engaged with all relevant supports and the Probation Service.
