Man jailed for stealing phones from teens on DART

By Eimear Dodd

A man has been jailed for his role in the robbery of two mobile phones from a group of teenage boys on a DART.

Cian Jones (22) was described in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court as the “ringleader” of four young men who were involved in the robbery of mobile phones from four teenage boys on a northbound Dart between Dun Laoghaire and Tara Street stations. The other three males have not yet been identified.

Jones, of O’Farrell House, Cumberland Street North, Dublin 1, pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and two of attempted robbery on June 20, 2022.

Imposing sentence on Monday, Judge Dara Hayes said the four teenagers had the “extraordinary misfortune to meet Jones and his acquaintances” while making their way home from Dun Laoghaire.

He described the offending as “serious” and said the victims were “entitled to travel on the Dart without being set upon”.

The court heard that the four teenage victims were on their way home and were each sitting by a window when a group of four males, including Jones, got onto the carriage.

This group walked past the teenage boys, then turned back and sat beside them, effectively blocking the victims in.

The investigating garda said the victims described Jones as the “ringleader”. He demanded to see their phones and threatened to hurt them unless they handed over their devices.

Jones also made threats to stab them and reached into his trousers, though no knife was produced. Three iPhones and a Samsung A52 were handed over, but a blue iPhone along with the Samsung were returned to their owners.

One of the boys handed his iPhone 12 to one of the individuals with Jones, while an iPhone 11 was also taken.

Jones swapped seats with one of his group and demanded that the owners of two iPhones carry out a factory reset on their phones. He became aggressive when one of the teenagers could not remember his iCloud password.

Jones also demanded cash from the teenagers, but they didn’t have any. He made further threats while telling the boys not to make a report to gardai.

After Jones got off the Dart, the boys remained on board until Connolly Station, where they contacted their parents.

One of the boys whose iPhone was stolen prepared a victim impact statement. He said he saved up for several months to buy the phone and is now nervous about using public transport. He said he has not been to Dun Laoghaire since this incident and his parents get concerned if he has to use public transport.

Jones was identified from CCTV. He has a number of previous convictions including three for robbery and is currently serving a sentence on another matter.

The investigating garda agreed with Justin McQuade BL, defending, that Jones’s earliest release date for his current sentence is next October.

It was further accepted that Jones has had a difficult upbringing, is doing well in custody and was co-operative with gardai.

The court heard that Jones has spent time in State care and has experienced homelessness since he reached his 18^th birthday.

Jones told the court that he is serving a sentence in Wheatfield Prison where he is going his Leaving Certificate and completing a Gaisce award. He said his parents had addiction issues and he is close to his grandmother, who is in poor health.

Jones said he left school at 14 and has ADHD. He has also undertaken several courses while in custody.

Mr McQuade asked the court to take into consideration his client’s early guilty plea and personal circumstances when imposing sentence. A psychological report and a recent probation report were handed into court.

Judge Dara Hayes noted while it is not clear if Jones had a knife, the threats were “severe” and “credible” enough for the teenagers to hand over their phones, though two of the devices were “not of sufficient quality to rob” and were handed back.

He said the aggravating factors include the young age of the victims, the threats made and Jones’s previous convictions.

Judge Hayes noted the mitigating features included an early guilty plea, his personal circumstances and the steps taken towards rehabilitation.

He handed Jones a four-and-a-half-year sentence backdated to December 12 last. He suspended the final 18 months on strict conditions, including that Jones place himself under the supervision of the Probation Service.

Addressing Jones directly, Judge Hayes said the court hoped he would take advantage of the supports that are available to him and that he would continue on the path towards rehabilitation.

“The court wishes you a very happy, law-abiding life,” he added.