Man who 'could have played rugby for Ireland' is jailed
The defendant pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court.
A man who “could have played rugby for Ireland” has been jailed for 18 months after he stole a fishing boat and burgled a garage.
Kevin Hastings, aged 30, of Rosbeg, Westport, pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court to charges of theft and burglary.
The court heard that Gardaí received a report of the theft of a fishing boat from the Quay in Westport at 6.15pm on May 19, 2019. Officers alerted the Coast Guard and Achill RNLI was tasked to assist in the operation after the boat was observed close to The Bills’ Rocks off the island.
Gardaí and RNLI crew boarded the boat and found Hastings who was the sole occupant. He admitted stealing the craft and told officers that he intended to "sail to America".
Det Sgt Pat Lavelle said a small amount of cannabis was found on Hastings and drug use may have contributed to his decision to want to sail to the United States.
On April 29, 2020, a burglary was reported at Colm Cosgrave’s motor dealership on the Castlebar Road in Westport. Hastings broke in via a side door at 3.15am and rifled through offices in the building. He was observed on CCTV wearing a beige coat with a fur trim that he was not wearing when he entered the premises.
He committed the offence while on bail for the boat theft. The defendant has 17 previous convictions.
Barrister Brendan McDonagh said his client was never going to be able to sail to America in such a vessel. Sgt Lavelle concurred and also agreed that the tasking of the RNLI was also out of concern for the safety of Hastings.
The defendant has since made a contribution of €500 to the RNLI.
Mr McDonagh said substance abuse may also have been a factor in the burglary at the garage, which was previously run by Hastings' father.
The barrister said Hastings was adopted into a loving family who still stand by him. He had enormous potential and was afforded opportunities in life but “also has a lot of demons”.
Sgt Lavelle said the defendant “could have played rugby for Ireland”.
Mr McDonagh said his client suffered sexual abuse while in boarding school during his teenage years and this led to drug and alcohol addiction. He has never offended while sober, but there are mental health issues and several attempts to free himself of his addictions were unsuccessful.
“Clearly, this is a tragedy for the Hastings family,” remarked Judge Eoin Garavan, adding that he could understand why the defendant has anger in his life after what he experienced.
The judge urged Hastings to use his rugby skills to help train talented young players in the future.
“I feel this man has hope,” the judge stated. “But this is the end of the line now."
Judge Garavan jailed Hastings for 18 months but backdated the sentence to September 26, 2024, to reflect time spent in custody. The defendant was also ordered to undergo counselling, addiction treatment, and urinalysis.
