Portlaoise Court: Man allegedly committed sex act in front of female passenger on train
Portlaoise Courthouse
A MAN who allegedly masturbated beside a woman on a train was remanded in custody when his case came before Portlaoise District Court last week.
The 36-year-old who cannot be named due to the court ruling is charged with indecency (to sitting beside a female passenger, unzipping his trousers and masturbating in front of her) at Thurles Train Station and with being intoxicated in a public place at Portlaoise Train Station on 26 June this year.
The prosecuting Detective Garda JP O’Brien applied to Judge Susan Fay to remand the accused in custody for two weeks.
The man replied: “I wish to finish it (case) today.” His solicitor Philip Meagher informed his client: “Gardaí wish to carry out further investigations on your identification, particularly on your passport. In those circumstances it is not possible to finalise the case today.” The man said: “I don’t know what other charges I am faced with in court,” to which Mr Meagher said that his client had been issued with the charges, “one being public indecency, the other Section 4 of the Public Act - intoxication.” Det. O’Brien said that directions are being sought from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on how the case should proceed (at District Court level or in the Circuit Court, which has broader sentencing powers).
The man asked Judge Fay: “I want to speak to my family. Is it possible to get my phone numbers.” Det. O’Brien said that gardaí seized the man’s phone to establish his identity but was unable to open it because the accused would not supply them with its access code. He said if that was provided to the gardaí, the accused request would be considered.
Judge Fay remanded the man in custody to the 16 July sitting of Portlaoise District Court when the case will be conducted by video link from Cloverhill Prison and consented to an Arabic interpreter and to applying free legal aid to the accused.
