Prisoner seeks to have dentures returned

A remand prisoner at Cloverhill Prison has brought a High Court action aimed at having his false teeth returned to him.

Boguslaw Jakubiec (53), a native of Poland with an address at Carcur Cottages, Wexford, has great difficulty eating food in the prison because he does not have his dentures and has lost a significant amount of weight, causing concern for his health, the court heard.

Efforts to resolve the matter had proven unsuccessful, leading to the proceedings being initiated, counsel for Mr Jakubiec said.

The matter was "eminently settleable" with "a lot of common sense", Mathias Kelly SC added.

Last month, following his arrest by Gardaí investigating break-ins in the Dublin area, Mr Jakubiec was brought before Judge Bryan Smith at Dublin District Court and remanded in custody to Cloverhill.

Mr Jakubiec, who is unemployed and does not speak English, is accused, with two others, of being involved in burglaries that allegedly occurred in Littlewood, Belarmine, Dublin 18 on March 15th last; at Wyckham Point, Wyckham Way, Dundrum on April 15th and at The Bridge Apartments, Shankill, on January 2nd last. The criminal proceedings have been adjourned.

At the High Court yesterday, Ms Justice Mary Laffoy granted Mr Kelly permission to serve short notice of the proceedings, aimed at having his client's dentures returned, on the Governor of Cloverhill Prison.

Mr Kelly said the action was being brought due to concerns about Mr Jakubiec’s health. Since his remand to Cloverhill, he has lost a significant amount of weight, counsel added.

The action was being brought on the grounds Mr Jakubiec’s treatment as a prisoner is inhumane and degrading and amounts to a breach of his rights under Article 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights.

While efforts had been made to resolve the matter, his client had had to bring High Court proceedings in an attempt to get his dentures, counsel said.

The judge returned the matter to Tuesday.