Eight-year jail term for theft of 1,905

A Dublin drug addict who was convicted of stealing €1,905 from a Centra shop has been sentenced to eight years in jail with three suspended.

Judge Patrick McCartan noted that Thomas Gough (29), “sought to spin a yarn to the jury” by getting into the witness box during his Dublin Circuit Criminal Court trial and lying under oath.

Shane Costelloe, defending, said his client has since accepted the jury’s decision and would not be appealing his conviction.

Mr Costelloe submitted that Gough, who was hospitalised with stab wounds and a fractured skull by Crumlin gang members last year, is remorseful for his actions.

He has 51 previous convictions, including six for stealing cars and had got bail for dangerous driving a month before the robbery.