Mayo man (28) pepper-sprayed three times by gardaí after smashing windows of parents' home

A Mayo man had to be pepper-sprayed three times by gardaí after he smashed the windows of his parents’ home with a wheel brace.

The 28-year-old defendant, who cannot be named in order to protect the identity of his victim, pleaded guilty to a number of charges before a sitting of Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court.

He admitted producing a wheel brace and damaging the windows and door of a house. All the offending occurred on December 1, 2025.

The man went to a property and caused damage to the front door, front window, and sitting room windows.

He was also charged with producing a wheel brace in the course of a dispute at the residence.

A quantity of MDMA was discovered on the man at a garda station in the county.

He was charged with being intoxicated in a public place and a breach of the peace when he engaged in threatening, abusing and insulting language. The male was also in breach of a barring order and a safety order.

The 28-year-old has been in custody since December.

Garda Alex McDermott was accompanied and supported by members of the Armed Support Unit when he attended the scene.

He observed the male, who had blood on his hands, walking around the property.

The man adopted a fighting stance and appeared enraged and intoxicated.

Gardaí told him to get on the ground and cease his aggressive behaviour, but he refused to comply.

The man had to be pepper-sprayed on three occasions before he got on his belly on the ground. He was handcuffed and arrested.

The court heard the man’s parents lived next door to his former partner.

The wheel brace he used to break the windows was found on a wheelie bin which he had taken from his former partner’s property and unsuccessfully attempted to set on fire.

The cost of the damage to the windows was €1,220.

The man has six previous convictions.

Barrister Brendan McDonagh said his client was so intoxicated that gardaí had to seek medical assistance for him on the night.

He was addicted to alcohol and drugs and consumed vodka and drugs at the scene.

“He was completely off his head,” Mr. McDonagh commented.

The court heard the man apologised to gardaí for his conduct, much of which he was unable to recall.

“His parents were petrified on the night in question,” said his barrister.

The judge said gardaí were met with a “mad man, an enraged beast,” on the night.

He praised Garda McDermott for his courage.

Judge Garavan imposed a 28-month prison sentence, suspending six months of that term for a period of two years.

The sentence was backdated to December 1, 2025, to reflect time already spent in custody.

* Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.