House burglar jailed for assaulting victims

By Declan Brennan

A house burglar who attacked two sisters when they confronted him in their home has received a partially suspended six-year prison term.

Dan Moorehouse (26) of Richmond Park, Monkstown, Dublin punched one of the young women in the face, bursting her lip open and cutting her cheek bone.

He “whacked” the other young woman in the nose, Garda Lee O’Donoghue told Jennifer Jackson BL, prosecuting, at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

The women had come home from some Christmas shopping to find the burglar running down the stairs and holding their mother’s purse. One of them shouted at him to drop the bag and grabbed him but he started hitting her in the head with his arm.

He got away from her but she ran after him. Moorehouse then turned and hit her hard in the face, Gda O’Donoghue testified. He then hit the second sister in the nose.

In victim impact statements both women said that for a time after the attack both felt fearful in their home. The first woman was left with a scar on her face, the court heard.

Moorehouse pleaded guilty to two counts of assault causing harm and one count of burglary at an address on Monkstown Road., south Dublin. His 60 previous convictions include burglary, attempted burglary, dangerous driving, possession of drugs and assault.

Judge Martin Nolan said that this was a terribly frightening ordeal for the women and that it must have been traumatic to be confronted in their home by this man.

He said that Moorehouse broke into the house to get items to sell so that he could feed a drug habit. He noted that fortunately the women have recovered fully from the physical injuries.

He said he accepted evidence that Moorehouse had a difficult start in life and has had mental health issues from a young age. But he said the defendant knew right from wrong and knew what he was doing when he burgled this house and when he attacked the women in order to make his escape.

He suspended the final 18 months of a six year custodial sentence.

In her victim impact statement the first woman told the court that she was repeatedly hit across the back of the head and later the man punched her in the face.

She said her burst lip started bleeding and the cut across her cheek bone has left a scar. She said that seeing her sister “crying and shaking” was upsetting.

She said she experienced headaches and throbbing pain over the days that followed and didn’t feel safe in her home. She felt paranoid and anxious and if she heard noises, she assumed somebody was breaking in.

The second woman stated that “it was really scary seeing this dark clothed figure running towards me” and it was horrible seeing her sister getting punched in the face.

She said she was shaking and crying after the incident and found herself constantly on edge opening the front door and would listen out for footsteps coming up the stairs at night.

When gardai arrived at the scene they found the back door completely smashed in and the upstairs bedrooms ransacked. CCTV footage harvested from the area showed Moorehouse entering a house operated by a homelessness charity 150m from the house he broke into.