Caused extensive damage with forklift in “truly bizarre” case

By Eimear Dodd

A man who used a forklift to cause extensive damage after breaking into a warehouse had no intention of stealing anything, a court has heard.

Darren Foster (44) pleaded guilty to charges of burglary and criminal damage on July 9, 2023, at a commercial premises in the Dublin Industrial Estate.

An investigating garda told Lisa Dempsey BL, prosecuting, yesterday that the premises are used by a department of St Micheal’s House, which carries out fit-out work on behalf of the HSE.

The court heard Foster entered the building on the night in question, then used a forklift to lift security doors to a secure area where tools were stored.

When a staff member checked the warehouse, they discovered extensive damage to the interior and the tools laid on the floor.

Foster was found by gardai in the back of a van parked nearby, covered by a blanket.

Defence counsel Barry Ward, BL, said his instructions are that Foster went to the warehouse as he wanted to get the attention of the property’s owner in relation to a debt.

He said his client had “no intention to steal” but wanted to “gain attention” for this issue.

He added that his client’s actions were “unsophisticated” and “not planned with forethought”.

Foster, of  Aughrim Street, Dublin 7, has a number of previous convictions, including for theft, burglary, drug offences and criminal damage.

He is currently serving a sentence, and his earliest release date is July 2025.

Imposing sentence, Judge Martin Nolan said he “didn’t know what to make” of Foster’s instructions to his counsel, adding if it was true, then it was “truly bizarre”.

He said Foster “deserves an extension” to his period in custody and imposed a 10-month sentence consecutive to Foster’s current sentence.

The court heard that the warehouse was locked up and the tools were stored within a secure area.

On the night in question, a staff member went to the warehouse following an alarm activation.

He noticed a window shutter was broken and a glass pane had been removed.

The staff member checked inside and saw that drawers had been gone through in an office.

He then saw that a forklift from the warehouse had been used to lift the security doors of the secure area and that extensive damage had been caused to the interior.

A number of tools from the secure area were laid out on the floor, while wires were also cut to telecom lines.

Around €4,400 of damage was caused, which disrupted the running of the department for a period of time, and the security doors had to be replaced.

After being notified of the alarm activation, a security guard drove to the area at 1.30 am.

He noticed that a shutter had been lifted from the front window and a pane of glass removed. He also saw a van parked outside and called gardai.

He later saw what appeared to be a man lifting the roller shutter to the warehouse.

He rang gardai again to tell them the person, who was wearing a leg brace, was still on the premises.

Separately, an owner of a building across from this warehouse also received an alarm notification.

He checked live CCTV and saw a man heading towards the St Micheal’s House unit.

Later in the footage, he noticed a van was moved to the other side of the road.

He contacted gardai and told them he had seen a man get into the van but did not see him leave.

Gardai at the scene turned their attention to a silver van, but initially saw no one inside.

They noticed some personal items in the cab and then banged on the side of the van, advising anyone inside to come out.

There was no response, and gardai broke a door to enter the van.

They then managed to access the back, where Foster – who had a black cast on his leg – was covered by a blanket.

He was arrested and made no admissions during interview.

Foster was on bail at the time of this offence.

No victim impact statement was provided to the court.

The investigating garda agreed with Mr Ward BL that his client’s offending stemmed from his addiction issues and he had alcohol on him at the time.

It was also accepted that no items were removed from the warehouse, and the tools were found in a usable condition.

The garda agreed that the early guilty plea was valuable and that Foster has been in custody since July 2023.

Defence counsel said his client had been a “functional member of society” and ran a successful business.

However, the death of his son was a trigger for him to develop addictions to cocaine and alcohol, which are at the root of his offending.

His client has detoxed since entering custody and is now substance-free.

He has used his time in custody well and is a volunteer with the Samaritans.

Mr Ward noted that custody is “difficult” for his client, who has “dietary issues”, and suitable food is not available to him in the Criminal Courts of Justice building.

He asked the court not to add substantially to his client’s time in custody.