A 24-year-old man has been jailed for five years for attacks on two women, threatening a taxi driver and hijacking the taxi, and drugs offences.
David McNamara, from Kiltalown Road in Tallaght in Dublin, admitted the offences which took place over a four-year period.
In the most recent incident, McNamara and his partner were in her home in Finglas on 20 July 2023 when they ordered a taxi to his home in Tallaght.
The taxi drove on to the M50 when he began shouting at her and when the taxi driver pulled over to the hard shoulder, he shouted at her to get out and ordered the taxi driver to "leave the car before I stick a knife in your throat".
The woman also managed to get out of the taxi before McNamara got into the driver's seat and took off at speed.
It was later found abandoned near his home.
The driver did not retaliate but took his phone before he got out and dialled 999.
He told gardaí he genuinely thought McNamara was going to stab him and that he had three children at home and the taxi was his only source of income.
McNamara offered 'significant resistance'
At first the woman denied knowing McNamara but spoke to gardaí at Finglas Garda Station.
She was interviewed by a specialist who assessed her as "particularly vulnerable".
Gardaí went to McNamara’s home in Tallaght with a warrant to arrest him a few days later, but he offered "significant resistance" and fled out the back.
The house was surrounded but he took shelter in a neighbour’s address and the neighbour did not co-operate with the gardaí.
The gardaí subsequently returned with an armed support unit and the garda helicopter and McNamara was arrested
When he placed his possessions, two bags, on the custody desk in the garda station, they contained street drug deals - €266 of cocaine and €308 of heroin along with €155 cash.
When he was interviewed by gardaí he replied "no comment" to the taxi driver’s allegations but denied but violent, abusive and coercively controlling his girlfriend.
He called her "a stupid s*** and f****** k******" and claimed he had never assaulted her, that her injuries had been caused "by a fall outside the house" or "maybe it was dirt".
He also claimed he was holding the drugs for a friend.
Attack on 16-year-old
Garda Shane Gallagher told the court that the victim had made attempts to withdraw her statement and that he had colleagues organised to take her to court in an unmarked car.
McNamara has been in custody since September 2023 and has previous convictions for drugs possession and assault.
He also attacked another woman four years previously when she was 16.
McNamara was due in court in September 2019 and was driving to court with no tax or insurance.
The teenager asked him to drop her off at the Luas but she was unable to get out of the car.
He grabbed her, tried to choke her and push her head to floor and she was trying to get attention of other road users by blowing horn
He threatened her and they ended up at unknown location, where he kicked her, pulled her hair and used a broken gear stick to choke her.
She got out, managed to flag down a truck driver who drove them both back to different areas of Tallaght.
The next day her mother reported the incident and sent photos of her injuries to the gardaí.
History of substance abuse
He initially gave his brother’s name when he was interviewed and when asked about choking the girl and putting her head to the floor he replied: "It would have been good if I had been able to do that."
He denied the charges, was granted bail, was arrested when he failed to turn up, was granted bail again and later pleaded guilty.
His defence counsel said today that he had spared the victim the ordeal of having to give evidence by admitting what he had done.
He said he was 22 at the time and has a history of substance abuse.
He also had difficulties in his childhood and education.
His defence counsel also said his brother died in tragic circumstances while he was in custody, his "long-suffering" mother is very supportive and was present in court and that while "it might be cold comfort" he offered his apologies to the two women.
Judge Martin Nolan said the assault on the two partners were vicious and troubling and both suffered "quite a bit" as did the taxi driver who was threatened with a knife.
The court accepted that he was young at the time and had pleaded guilty and sentenced him to a total of five years in prison from today.
