Defense barrister Daithi O’Donnabhain told Bandon District Court that Jack O’Connell, 27, of Rowanville, Onslow Gardens, Commons Road, Cork pleaded guilty to theft, burglary, trespassing and unlawful taking of a motor vehicle.

Outlining the facts, Sergeant Tom Mulcahy said various offenses took place at a number of locations in the early hours of January 19, 2024.

Three men driving a black Volkswagen Passat with Donegal number plates wearing black clothing and face masks or balaclava were seen at several locations.

A car was burgled in Ballinhassig with €30 in cash, €160 in Dunnes Stores vouchers and €20 in Pennys vouchers taken. The objects were not recovered.

Two men were seen jumping a fence at Stone Well, Kinsale, at 3.30am. They proceeded to search the interior of a car parked there and the crime was reported to the police the following day. A theft was also reported from Gleann Orga in Kinsale.

At 4am at Ard na Mara in Kinsale, three men described as wearing balaclavas broke the lock on a shed and took a motorbike but were interrupted by the owner and left the bike behind before fleeing in a black car with Donegal plates.

A short time later, police received a report that youths were “checking out cars” in the Belgooly area.

At Curra Woods in Riverstick, police responded to a report of three men trying to break into cars. When gardaí arrived in the area, they came across the black Passat and cornered it in a cul de sac.

The car drove straight into the Garda patrol car, which damaged the front wing and wheel, and three men wearing dark clothing with their faces covered got out and fled on foot.

A short time later, Jack O’Connell was caught nearby and arrested and taken to Kinsale police station for questioning. It later emerged that the black Passat car had been stolen and had clone number plates that matched a vehicle that was for sale on the Done Deal website.

Mr O’Donnabhain said that by pleading guilty his client had saved the state considerable resources in what would have been a complex and time-consuming prosecution. He admitted that “the picture was extremely bad”, but added that Mr O’Connell was “quite clearly a man struggling with addiction”. He said that if given “one last chance” to live with his mother, he would try to deal with his addiction problems.

The court heard that Mr O’Connell had already spent three months and nine days in prison when he was remanded in custody on the same charges in January, before being granted High Court bail. Mr O’Donnabhain said his client was trying to access addiction treatment services but was still suffering “under the yoke of addiction” and apologized and was remorseful for his actions.

The court heard Mr O’Connell had 58 previous convictions for a variety of offences, including road traffic, public order, drugs and theft.

Judge Monika Leech said the guilty plea which was “valuable to the state” was a mitigating factor. She said Mr O’Connell had an extremely long list of previous convictions which featured “a very long litany of varying degrees of offending”.

For the theft in Ballinhassig he was sentenced to two months’ imprisonment, for the offense at Stone Well Kinsale he was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment.

For the breaking of the motorcycle he was sentenced to five months in prison, and for the illegal taking of a vehicle he was sentenced to two months. The trespass charge was considered. The sentences are to run concurrently, with immediate effect, and Mr. O’Connell will be given credit for time already served in prison.

He was also bailed to appear at Cork District Court on November 11 on his own bail of €100 in connection with a four-month suspended sentence.