A driver who led gardaí on a high speed chase, during which he almost hit a cyclist, has been given "the chance of a lifetime" by a judge. The court heard the Dubliner was bailed after the first high-speed chase incident and while he was on bail he led gardaí on a second chase, hitting speeds up to 160km per hour in wet conditions.
The driver went through several sets of red lights, went around a roundabout the wrong way and was only arrested during one of the incidents when he crashed his car. However, despite being convicted of a range of offences and a four-year jail term being imposed on him, a judge at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court suspended the full sentence, meaning no time in prison.
Judge Orla Crowe told Mark Fagan (21) she was giving him the "chance of a lifetime" because of the progress he had made in his life since the driving incidents within a nine-day period in July, 2020.
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Fagan, Galtimore Park, Drimnagh, Dublin, faced charges of endangerment, dangerous driving, driving without insurance and possession of cannabis on July 7th and 8th. He was also charge with a second series of offences relating to the second incident, on July 16th, including dangerous driving, drug driving and possession of cannabis. The court was told Fagan had no previous convictions and does not have a driver's licence.
He pleaded guilty to all charges and his four-year jail term was suspended based on a number of conditions, including that he engaged with the probation services for two years, underwent drug testing and abided by a four-year driving ban.
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During a sentencing hearing, the court was told the first incident occurred on July 7th, 2020, when it was raining heavily and there was a lot of surface water on the roads. When gardaí in a patrol car saw a vehicle being driven a speed towards them they tried to stop the driver, who ignored the gardaí in their car with their blue lights flashing.
Fagan sped away and he turned off the lights in his car as he drove through red lights. During that chase, which was up to 140km per hour, he almost hit a cyclist and drove the wrong way around a roundabout and on the wrong side of the road.
The chase last up to 15 minutes, saw Fagan repeatedly break red lights and ended with him being pursued by four or five Garda cars. Fagan was slowed by another driver in front of him and when he was arrested he was carrying cannabis.
During the second incident, Fagan sped away from a patrol car at traffic lights before undertaking other vehicles and driving into oncoming traffic, forcing those drivers to take evasive action. He reached speeds of up to 160km per hour - in a 60km per hour zone - and the chase eventually involved four Garda cars and the Garda helicopter. He crashed his car and tried to run but was found and arrested and drugs were discovered in his system.
Fagan's lawyer told the court he had grown up in difficult circumstances, where drugs were widespread. He added Fagan had used cannabis to relax and cocaine to become more lively in social situations. However, he had since undergone a residential programme and had turned his life around. The judge agreed Fagan had made great strides, and because of that, she suspended the four years imposed on him for the range of offences he pleaded guilty to.
