In Short

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Man pays 15,000 to friend for biting part of ear during match

A hospital employee has paid €15,000 to another man for biting off part of his ear during an indoor five-a-side soccer game between friends.

Darragh Nagle (26), Ballybane, Galway, pleaded guilty at Galway Circuit Criminal Court yesterday to assaulting Vincent Fahey at Westside Community Centre, Galway, on September 28th, 2009. Accepting the money, Mr Fahey told Judge Raymond Groarke he did not want Nagle’s life ruined and, while he was still conscious of the scar on the top of his ear, he had recovered well from the injury. “I accept it was just a rush of blood,” he said.

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Judge Groarke imposed a 12-month sentence for the assault which he suspended for 12 months, and directed that the €15,000 be paid to the victim.

Ethiopia potato scheme appeal

The public is being asked to help fund a seed potato project which will provide food security to thousands of Ethiopian families in an area the size of Ireland.

Vita, an Irish NGO, has already had great success in Ethiopia by providing seed potatoes to families who found one bag of seed can yield 10 bags of potatoes.

This increases income from €50 a year to €500 a year and an ability to pay back, in kind, the original bag plus another bag.

These two bags then go into a community-based co-op to be used by other families. Last year, Vita piloted the Irish seed potato programme to 300 farmers.

Vita can be contacted at 01-8820108, or e-mail info@vita.ie.

Fined 6,000 on cattle tag charges

A judge told a father and son from Donegal he was imposing “a substantial fine” on them because their actions threatened to undermine the good reputation of the Irish beef herd.

Martin (72) and Noel Devine (41) of Kirkneedy, Newmills, Letterkenny, were convicted and fined €6,000 at Monday’s sitting of Letterkenny District Court after pleading guilty to interfering with tags on cattle at their farm.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food took the case against them in relation to offences committed on separate dates in 2008. They were convicted of a number of breaches of national and European legislation.