Machete altercation
A man who returned to a gym with a machete to frighten another customer with whom he had a verbal altercation with has been given a suspended sentence.
Dylan Meagher (22) said he “saw red” following an argument with another customer of the gym after he asked the man to allow him through a gate as he did not have his fob to get in. He later returned to the gym and cycled up and down outside with a machete.
Meagher, of Benmadigan Close, Drimnagh, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of a machete at Energie Fitness, Lansdowne Gate Business Centre, Drimnagh on September 26th, 2020. He has no previous convictions.
Ghislane Maxwell trial
The weeks-long process of selecting a jury for the federal sex trafficking trial of financier Jeffrey Epstein’s ex-girlfriend, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, has begun in the US.
Maxwell has said she is innocent of charges alleging that she recruited teenagers who were not yet adults for Epstein to sexually abuse from 1994 to 2004, Judge Alison J Nathan told 132 prospective jurors.
The judge warned prospective jurors not to discuss the case with anyone or research it, on the internet or anywhere else.
Health service pressure
A further 3,024 cases of Covid-19 have been reported in the Republic, the National Public Health Emergency Team has confirmed.
There are 458 Covid-positive people in hospital, including 90 in intensive care units and 250 receiving advanced respiratory support.
It comes as the chief executive of the HSE, Paul Reid, told a briefing on Thursday that the daily increasing levels of Covid is causing “significant and unrelenting pressure” on the health system.
Murder investigation
A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a woman's body was discovered at an apartment in north Dublin on Thursday. Gardaí were called to the premises in the Charlestown area of Finglas on Thursday morning.
As reported in The Irish Times, detectives believe the woman, a foreign national aged in her 30s, was attacked in the property in Finglas. It is understood that she suffered significant injuries which proved fatal.
The man who was arrested on suspicion of murder, also a foreign national aged in his 30s, was known to the deceased. He is being detained at Finglas Garda Station.
Rent caps
The Government has signed off on measures which will cap rent increases at 2 per cent, or in line with inflation if the rate is below 2 per cent.
Minister for Housing Darragh O'Brien confirmed the decision, which will apply in rent pressure zones (RPZ), on Thursday, adding that key provisions are now being drafted "as a matter of priority".
The changes will form part of the Residential Tenancies (No. 3) Bill 2021, which is due to be published later this month. The Minister confirmed the rent cap will apply immediately once the Bill has been enacted.
Sexual abuse images
A man who sent child sexual abuse images to a UK man he was dating online has been jailed for one year.
Brian Payne (39) told gardaí he sent explicit images of young boys to a man in Manchester he was dating online three years ago, as this man had told him he liked young boys, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard.
Payne, of Greencourt, Claremorris, Co Mayo, pleaded guilty to one count of possessing five images of child pornography at an address in East Wall, Dublin on February 12th, 2017.
New-look Ireland
Stephen Kenny is confident people are “excited” about his new-look Republic of Ireland team as he rebuilds for a tilt at qualification for Euro 2024.
Ireland will bring an end to their World Cup qualifying campaign next week when they face Portugal in Dublin before travelling to Luxembourg, but will do so already knowing they will not be in Qatar for next year’s finals.
Kenny’s men currently lie in fourth place in Group A behind Luxembourg, who pulled off a shock 1-0 victory at the Aviva Stadium in March, and only secured their first competitive victory under their new manager at the 13th attempt last month when they won 3-0 in Azerbaijan.
