Sex offender breached court order by using public transport

A convicted sex offender with convictions for sacrilege and buggery of an animal breached a court order by using public transport without first informing gardaí.

Anthony Goodman (72) pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to breaking a court order. In June 2012, an order was made at Cork Circuit Criminal Court prohibiting him from attending certain locations in Cork, and from travelling on public transport – with the exception of one local bus route – unless he gave gardaí­ two hours' notice.

Judge Elma Sheahan backdated a sentence of 2½ years to September 2015, when he went into custody and suspended the final eight months.

Goodman admitted to not giving the gardaí adequate notice before boarding a bus on Westmoreland Street, Dublin, on August 26th, 2015, and before boarding a bus to Enniskerry on June 14th, 2015, from D’Olier Street, Dublin.

The court heard he has more than 200 previous convictions, which date back to the 1980s and involve incidents in Ireland and the UK.

These offences include sexual assault, causing electricity to be diverted, buggery with an animal and sacrilege. Four previous convictions were also in relation to travelling on public transport without prior notification to gardaí.