By Jessica Magee
A tourist who was struck at least three times with a machete during a savage attack in Dublin city centre was lucky he didn’t bleed to death, a court has heard.
The visitor who had just arrived from France was set upon by a group of men, one of whom called him a “fucking immigrant”, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard.
John Hogan (33) was sentenced to five and a half years in prison by Judge Martin Nolan, who described the attack as “particularly savage”.
Hogan, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm on Talbot Street, Dublin 1, on November 26 last.
He further admitted to producing a machete on the same occasion.
Passing sentence on Thursday, Judge Nolan set a headline sentence of eight years and said the assault was “at the higher end of the scale” for this type of offence.
“This man was minding his own business when he was jostled and struck several times with a machete, a serious lethal-type weapon. He lost a lot of blood, and he lost consciousness. He could have bled to death. Luckily, no vital artery or vein was lacerated,” said the judge.
“Judge Nolan said if the victim had died, the level of intention for a case of murder would have been satisfied.
“You certainly intended to cause him serious harm. They were forceful strokes, cutting into the leg and towards the bone,” said the judge, addressing Hogan.
Judge Nolan added that the victim had been “properly terrified” and was now “living with this trauma”.
“I suspect he won’t come to this country again,” said the judge.
The victim, originally from Moldova but living in Paris for the last 17 years, had come to Ireland that morning for the weekend to meet a friend who had travelled from Amsterdam.
Garda Seán Dineen told Aoife O’Leary BL, prosecuting, that the two friends became separated, and the victim found himself on Talbot Street at around 9 pm.
He went to a shop to buy a bottle of water and stepped aside to let a group of men pass, who had been shouting at different people on the street.
The victim later told gardaí that the group backed him against a wall, surrounding him, and that one of them hit him with a blade.
He said it happened very fast but he kept his hands down and tried to calm things down, speaking at first in French and then English to say he was a tourist, the court heard.
One of the men shouted that he was a “fucking immigrant” and called out to Hogan, who attacked the victim with the machete.
The victim described the machete as being like a sword, though wider and shorter, over 40cm long and very shiny and polished. “I’ve never seen anything sharper,” he told gardaí.
The man was scared for his life and could feel his shoes filling with blood; he knew he needed help immediately before he would lose consciousness.
He blacked out and awoke to find paramedics trying to revive him before he was brought by ambulance to the Mater Hospital.
Three separate clips of CCTV footage were played in court showing the attack from different angles, including from overhead.
The man required surgery to close and clean two deep wounds on his right leg and spent several days in hospital, the court heard.
He declined to submit a victim impact statement but told gardaí he was still going through trauma and worried whether he would ever feel safe again.
Travel had been a hobby for the victim, the court heard; he used to travel extensively throughout Europe but felt this had now been taken from him. He did not know if he would travel again.
Hogan was identified from the CCTV footage but said nothing of evidential value during interview.
The machete was recovered from a city centre hostel.
Hogan has 29 previous convictions from the District Court, including several for possession of knives, theft and public order offences.
John Moher BL, defending, said it was clear from the footage that it was a horrific attack and that little or nothing could be said in mitigation.
Counsel said Hogan had written a letter of apology, which would be “cold comfort” to the injured party.
The court heard that Hogan has a history of addiction to alcohol and drugs but has undergone counselling.
Mr Moher said that when Hogan was stable, he engaged in voluntary work.
Hogan had a work history as a bricklayer and a driver for a large supermarket chain, the court heard. He also has five children aged between three and 15.
The sentence was backdated to December 30, 2023, when Hogan went into custody on this offence.