Man who hit garda while trying to escape on stolen motorbike is jailed

Sonya McLean

A man who hit a garda while he was trying to make his escape on a stolen motorbike has been jailed for four and a half years.

Christopher Reynolds (25) was also jailed for having cocaine worth almost €300,000 for sale or supply two and a half years earlier.

The court was shown footage of the incident in May 2025, when Reynolds drove a stolen bike through a very narrow gap in the forecourt of a garage. He rounded the corner and collided with a garda who had been pursuing him.

Reynolds also came off the bike, but he fled, running across a dual carriageway into the carpark of a nearby supermarket while being chased by gardaí.

He was caught, immediately took responsibility and apologised. The garda suffered a dislocated foot and tore two ligaments.

Reynolds later told gardaí that it was not intentional. He said he bought the bike but knew it was stolen as he had to use a screwdriver to start it. He was on bail for the drugs offence at the time.

Defence counsel submitted that Reynolds himself said the garda was “just out doing his job” and “did not deserve what happened”. His plea of guilty was accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions on the “basis of recklessness”.

Reynolds, of Thornwood, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to driving a stolen motorbike and a charge of endangerment on North Road, Finglas on May 28th, 2025.

He also pleaded guilty to having 4.3 kg of cocaine, worth €297,346 for sale or supply on January 4th, 2023. He has nine previous convictions.

Judge Orla Crowe said the drugs offence involved a substantial amount of cocaine, although she noted Reynolds was an addict and said he was under pressure from a drug debt at the time.

In relation to the endangerment offence, she said it was particularly serious. “This was endangerment on a stolen motorbike,” she said.

She set a headline sentence of four years for the drugs offence, which she reduced to three years taking mitigation into account. She set a consecutive sentence of three years for the endangerment offence, reducing it to two years.

She suspended the final six months of the total five year sentence on a number of conditions.

Aoife McNickle BL, prosecuting, told the court that customs officials intercepted a suspect package that arrived into Dublin Airport from Colombia via Miami on December 31st, 2022.

Preliminary tests confirmed it was cocaine and a joint operation was set up to make a controlled delivery of the package the following week.

On January 4th, 2023, the package was delivered to the address on the parcel, a café in an industrial unit in Dublin. An attempt was made to deliver it but nobody by the name of the addressee was there.

The phone number connected with the parcel was dialled and a male voice answered. He made arrangements to come via taxi and a surveillance operation was put in place. Reynolds was then caught collecting the package and placing it in the boot of a taxi.

He was arrested and later provided gardaí with a pre-prepared statement taking responsibility for the drugs. It was accepted that he was acting under the instruction of someone else. He had agreed to get involved in order to reduce a drug debt.

Ms McNickle said on May 28th, 2025, two motorbikes were spotted driving at speed in the Dublin 11 area. They were suspected stolen vehicles and gardaí followed until they pulled into the forecourt of a garage on the North Road in Finglas.

Gardaí approached and the bikes took off at speed. Attempts were made to try and cut them off but Reynolds drove through a narrow gap by the front of the shop and ultimately collided with the garda.

Following his arrest, he acknowledged that he had panicked and that he struck the garda.

Giollaíosa Ó Lideadha SC, defending, said Reynolds, a father of two, is described by his partner as a “good dad” who has learned from his mistake.

He submitted that Reynolds expressed genuine remorse and is engaging well with services since his remand in custody. He is attending classes and counsel submitted he is trying to “better himself”.

Mr Ó Lideadha said his client wants to be “a positive role model” for his children before he submitted that his previous convictions were related to his drug addiction and a resulting chaotic lifestyle.