A father of five accused of an arson attack “with a lack of apparent motive” that gutted five cars on the South Circular Road in Dublin has been remanded in custody.
Thomas Murphy (35), who had been residing in a hostel on the South Circular Road, was charged with five counts of criminal damage to vehicles that went on fire outside houses in the early hours of Thursday.
Mr Murphy, who also has ties to the Bluebell area in the capital, appeared at Dublin District Court on Saturday where Judge Karen Dowling refused bail. The court heard gardaí have yet to establish a motive for the incident.
The unemployed man, who “made no reply” to each charge, has yet to enter a plea.
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Garda Aiden Doyle told a contested bail hearing it was alleged that at 4.40am the accused approached a Skoda Kamiq car and set it on fire.
That ignited two other vehicles, a Nissan Micra and a Citroen 3, parked on either side of the Skoda, causing an estimated €60,000 in damage.
A second incident occurred 100m away, where a Ford Focus was set alight and caused significant damage to a Land Rover Discovery.
Garda Doyle said high-quality CCTV showed a male in distinctive clothing, namely a navy snuddie top, a hat and sliders, exiting the accused man’s address and walking in the direction of the initial fire.
The male then watched the fire while on his phone, and was also observed on CCTV returning to the accused’s hostel.
As gardaí dealt with the first blaze, the male was again captured on security camera exiting and going in the direction of St Anne’s Road. Footage showed the male holding a box labelled “chocolate fountain” and setting fire to the Ford Focus using rubbish placed underneath the car.
Photos of the cars were handed in to the court, along with CCTV images.
He was detained and questioned after turning up at Kevin Street Garda station, after his hostel room had already been searched, by which time he left.
A snuddie and chocolate fountain box were seized from his room. Garda Doyle said further charges may be proffered.
Voicing “grave concerns” about Mr Murphy being granted bail, he explained that he feared for public safety and possible witness intimidation.
Cross-examined by solicitor Lorraine Stephens, the garda said onerous bail conditions would not alleviate his concerns, and the accused did not know the vehicle owners.
Ms Stephens submitted that her client, who is on social welfare, was a dedicated father with a significant role in his children’s lives. She also emphasised that he could face a couple of years in prison on remand awaiting trial, while he had the presumption of innocence.
The court heard he has been awaiting housing and has been staying at the hostel.
The solicitor said he would seek a new address, sign on daily at a Garda station, and had no live warrants. She also stressed that Mr Murphy had voluntarily presented himself to the Garda station after the search of his hostel room, which was significant and demonstrated that he was not trying to evade justice.
Judge Dowling ruled that, having listened carefully to the submissions and evidence, the threshold had been met to refuse bail. She remanded the accused, who did not give evidence, in custody to appear at Cloverhill District Court on Wednesday. Legal aid was granted.
