Mayo man with lengthy record of public order offences remanded in custody

A Castlebar man with a lengthy record of public order offences was remanded in custody at Castlebar District Court as he awaited further proceedings at Circuit Court level.

Eamon Maughan, of 21 Castlegrove, Pontoon Road, Castlebar, appeared before Judge Sandra Murphy, having been in custody since the end of October.

Court presenter Sergeant John O’Reilly outlined that on March 22, 2025, Garda Deborah Gilroy observed Maughan at Castlegrove in a highly intoxicated state.

He was arrested and issued with a fixed charge penalty notice, which subsequently went unpaid.

Solicitor Mr. Gary Mulchrone told the court that his client was also subject to a suspended sentence.

Sergeant O’Reilly said that on October 15, 2025, Maughan had been convicted of two Section 4 public order offences, fined €150 on each charge, with three months allowed to pay. The court was told that Maughan has approximately 20 previous convictions.

Mr. Mulchrone said that of the most recent convictions, five were public order matters, with further Section 4 offences expected to come before the court.

He said his client had ongoing difficulties with alcohol and was frequently coming to the attention of gardaí while highly intoxicated, presenting a danger to himself.

He told the court that Maughan had a long history of alcohol addiction and that his name was on a treatment list within the prison system, but due to the lengthy waiting times inside the jail, he is keen to rehabilitate outside of the prison setting. He said this was the first time his client was seriously seeking treatment.

Mr. Mulchrone said the most recent offence potentially triggered a suspended sentence imposed in 2021, adding that other suspended sentences had already been activated before Judge Garavan at Circuit Court level.

He said a five-year suspended sentence had been imposed by the Circuit Court in 2021.

Judge Sandra Murphy said that treatment was the only effective way of addressing the situation.

“He needs treatment. That is the only way to deal with it,” she said.

Judge Murphy said that, given the circumstances, she did not see any purpose in imposing further financial penalties.

“There is no point in going after him for tranches of money. It would cost more than it is worth,” she said.

Judge Murphy indicated that the appropriate course was to finalise the matter and allow the statutory 14-day period to elapse before any further steps could be taken.

She noted that there would be no sitting of Castlebar Circuit Court until February 9 and said she was not prepared to grant bail as the 14-day period had not yet expired.

Maughan was remanded in custody to appear before Galway Circuit Court.

* Published under the Courts Reporting Scheme.