Suspended jail term for theft from Mayo pharmacy
The defendant pleaded guilty at Castlebar District Court.
A Ballinrobe man whose offending has been linked to the deaths of both his parents has received a suspended prison sentence.
Richard Egan of Lough Mask Road, Ballinrobe, appeared before Castlebar District Court charged with theft at O'Donnell's Pharmacy, Westport, and a public order offence in Westport.
Gda Sgt Fiona Farrell told the court that at approximately 5.45pm on March 28, 2026, Egan entered O'Donnell's Pharmacy and took gift sets valued at €200. The property was not recovered.
On April 8, 2026, gardaí responded to a dispute at North Mall, Westport, and found Egan at the scene with his trousers around his ankles, shouting at the top of his voice. He was subsequently arrested.
Solicitor Gary Mulchrone told the court his client had a significant number of previous convictions. A large proportion of the criminal record was very old, with a concentrated period of offending from 2001 to 2003 that had ceased until 2022. Both spates of offending were linked to bereavements.
Egan's father had died when he was 18 or 19, leading him into difficulty with alcohol. His mother's death in 2022 caused him to relapse, and he had not been able to access the help he needed since.
Mr Mulchrone said his client has a chronic addiction problem and was homeless in recent months. He said a period in Mayo Co Council emergency accommodation had not been a conducive environment for recovery, but Egan has since moved in with his partner and is in a more stable situation.
Seeking a referral to the Probation Service, Mr Mulchrone said Egan was honest about the seriousness of his alcohol problem and entered an early guilty plea.
Noting that Egan's circumstances had improved, Judge Ciaran Liddy declined to seek a probation report. He imposed a six-month prison sentence for the theft, suspended for one year, with a condition that Egan stay out of O'Donnell's Pharmacy.
- Published as part of the Courts Reporting Scheme.
