By Eimear Dodd
A man who stabbed a passenger in an unprovoked attack at Dublin Airport was acting out in a cry for help, a court has been told.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard today that Kasonga Mbuyi (52) stabbed a German man in an unprovoked attack.
He was seen behaving erratically before the attack and wasn’t wearing shoes.
Mbuyi, with an address at Clare Street, Limerick, was suffering from a paranoid delusion at the time and has since been diagnosed with schizophrenia with previous cannabis misuse.
He told gardai he carried out the unprovoked and random assault as a cry for help.
Mbuyi was sent forward from the District Court on signed guilty pleas to assault causing harm and production of a pen knife on September 17, 2023 at Dublin Airport.
He has been in custody since his arrest.
Detective Garda Cathal Connolly told Miranda Egan-Langley BL, prosecuting, that a German man was standing outside the Terminal One building at the airport when Mbuyi approached him.
Mbuyi looked at him and said: “I’m going to kill you”, before stabbing him repeatedly with a penknife.
The victim attempted to use his briefcase to defend himself and a number of passerbys also intervened.
He was taken to Beaumont Hospital where he was treated for eight wounds to his neck, chest and left flank.
These injuries were mostly superficial, but the victim required 12 stitches. A medical report was provided to the court.
Mbuyi was arrested and was later taken to hospital under garda escort to be treated for a broken foot and dislocated knee, which occurred in the days before the attack occurred.
He sustained these injuries running from people he believed were chasing him, the court was told.
Mbuyi accepted responsibility for the attack, and told gardai it was a cry for help.
He said he’d recently been made homeless and was living a hostel after his privately rented accommodation in Limerick had been sold.
He said he felt sad and that no one would help or listen to him.
Mbuyi said he didn’t know the victim, felt sorry for him and was “trying to do a crazy thing to get help”.
Det Gda Connolly said gardai considered that Mbuyi downplayed his culpability somewhat during interview.
Ms Egan-Langley told the court that Mbuyi was initially considered not fit to plead and was transferred to the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) from Cloverhill Prison.
He was deemed fit to enter a plea in March. Mbuyi has four minor previous convictions for road traffic offences.
In a victim impact statement read by Ms Egan-Langley, the victim said he was signed off work for three weeks.
He said the scars on his body are a reminder of the attack and his emotional scars are as present as the physical ones.
He said the attack has had a “profound” impact on his life, his family and those around him.
He said he hoped that Mbuyi would receive help to deal with his aggression and other circumstances in addition to a just outcome, adding that “society must first and foremost be protected from such acts”.
Det Gda Connolly agreed with Leonara Frawley BL, defending, that it is accepted that her client was in a dark place at the time and was seen behaving erratically before the attack occurred.
It was further accepted that Mbuyi had gone to a garda station and Limerick emergency department seeking help before this incident occurred.
Several psychological reports were handed to the court. Ms Frawley said her client is an Angolan-born Irish citizen, who has a good work history.
Counsel said it appeared Mbuyi became increasingly anxious, then delusional following the death of his father in the UK in August 2023.
Mbuyi started to accuse his brother-in-law and other family members of involvement in his father’s death, and counsel suggested he was at the airport to make arrangements for travel to the UK.
Counsel said Mbuyi doesn’t have a clear recollection of events, but now believes the devil was in his mind at the time and accepts what he did was very wrong.
A member of the psychiatric team at Cloverhill Prison outlined that Mbuyi was transferred to CMH, returning to the prison in March 2025.
He said Mbuyi is doing well and taking his medication.
He also noted that a report could be prepared by the psychiatrist outlining the structures required to support Mbuyi upon his release from custody.
Adjourning the case to July, Judge Martina Baxter directed the preparation of a probation report, a governor’s report and urine analysis.