A MAN set fire to a shed at a community garden allotment causing more than €2,000 worth of damage following a row with his wife who was a member.
Martin Donovan (34), Béal Srutha, Ballybane, Galway, pleaded guilty at Galway District Court yesterday to arson at Ballybane Community Gardens, Castlepark, Galway, on March 22nd last. He also pleaded guilty to trespassing in a shed at the allotment site on the same date.
Garda Declan Mulligan said he was on patrol at 11pm that night when he noticed the garden shed was on fire. He spotted Donovan running from the shed and he arrested him.
Donovan admitted to the garda that he set fire to the shed with a cigarette lighter because he knew his estranged wife was a member of the allotment group and they were having a row at the time.
A quotation handed into court estimated that €2,500 worth of damage was done involving the loss of the shed and the garden tools it had contained.
Defence solicitor Valerie Corcoran said her client had been a member of the community garden group himself and was sorry for what he did.
Ms Corcoran said her client would question the cost of the damage outlined in the quotation.
Seeing from the quotation that the garden shed cost €500 to replace, Judge Mary Fahy gave Donovan until February 6th next to bring €500 to court to pay for that. She said she would then deal with the matter by way of community service in lieu of a prison sentence.