A round-up of today's other stories in brief.
Irishman dies in road crash in Washington
A Maryland driver has been charged with second-degree murder following the death of an Irishman in a Washington DC road crash early yesterday, writes Denis Staunton.
Hotel manger Diarmuid O'Brien (29) died after his car was struck head-on by an SUV driving at high speed in the wrong direction.
Mr O'Brien, who was assistant general manager at a Marriott Courtyard hotel in Washington, moved to there last September.
Kadri Atalay (42) has been charged with second- degree murder.
Peter Hillary, regional vice-president of the Jurys Hotel Group, which owns the Marriott Courtyard hotels, said colleagues heard the news of Mr O'Brien's death with great sadness.
Two jailed for extortion, robbery
A man who was involved in an attempt to obtain money by menaces and unlawfully taking a car belonging to a fellow Lithuanian two years ago, has been jailed for 10 years after a four-day trial at a special sitting of Monaghan Circuit Criminal Court.
Gintaras Zeluis (37), Celbridge, Co Kildare, was one of three Lithuanians who pleaded not guilty to the charges. Arvydas Bartkevicius (24), Kiltipper Rise, Tallaght, Co Dublin, was found guilty of unlawfully taking the car but acquitted on the extortion charge. He was jailed for three years.
Laimonas Skladaitis (26), Clonliffe Road, Dublin, was cleared on both charges but ordered to keep the peace and not have any contact with the owner of the car or his family.
Warrants were issued for the arrest of two other Lithuanians, who had failed to appear on similar charges.
€7,000 for waiter struck by bottle
A waiter who was struck on the back of the head with a bottle in the kitchen of a Chinese restaurant has been awarded €7,000 by the Employment Appeals Tribunal. It found that Buu Luong, Brookfield, Tallaght, was constructively dismissed by Lacrombs, trading as the Sichuan Restaurant, Lower Kilmacud Road, Stillorgan.
Mr Luong had told the tribunal he had informed the restaurant he would return to work if something was done about the man who had struck him.