A MAN (72) has had a 22-month prison sentence adjourned for offences arising out of a 25-year land dispute with his neighbours.
Judge John Neilan said at Mullingar District Court that if Michael Corroon got “the entire county of Westmeath he would still want the county next door”. He has “an obsession with property as if he is going to bring it all up to the place of his eternal departure”.
The incident involved Mr Corroon driving a loading shovel at his neighbour, digging up 86m of road, an Eircom pole and lines and then driving at gardaí when they arrived before isolating himself in his house and refusing to come out on September 2nd last.
Judge Neilan said the quarry owner and farmer, who will be 73 next month, continued to persist with a delusion that there was “a conspiracy between gardaí and the judiciary, including Judge Kennedy in the Circuit Court and the title of this court”. He was “seriously taken aback” that Mr Corroon had been living at his home for the last four months on foot of a High Court bail order.
The judge expressed his concern that Mr Corroon believes he has been wronged by decisions giving his neighbour a right of way.
“He persists in holding a grudge regarding the Colgan family,” he said, adding that he had “serious concerns” regarding their safety. “He believes nobody has any right to own property besides him.”
The judge referred to medical reports which suggested that Mr Corroon “hadn’t been willing to be seen” by health professionals but had provided “various excuses”.
He adjourned sentence for 12 months to allow the court assess Mr Corroon’s progress and granted gardaí liberty to re-enter the case at any time.