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Two men are being questioned in connection with the hijacking of a taxi in Galway last night. Gardaí say they were detained following an extensive operation on the outskirts of the city.The alarm was raised just before midnight after two men allegedly attacked a taxi driver and stole his vehicle. It is understood the pair got into the car in the Loughrea area at around 11:30pm and asked the driver to bring them to a location outside the county. This led to an incident in the taxi and one of the men is thought to have taken control of the vehicle. The driver, who is in his early 40s, managed to raise the alarm after he was thrown from the car and left on the side of the M18 motorway. He is said to have been shaken by the incident but did not receive any serious injuries.The vehicle was observed in Clareglaway a short time later and was pursued by a number of garda patrol cars, before being brought to a halt. This resulted in the taxi being brought to a stop on Bóthar na dTreabh, when the two men fled the car on foot. They were subsequently arrested nearby. The men - one in his mid 20s; the other in his early thirties - are being held under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act at the regional garda headquarters in Galway.
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Two men have been charged in connection with the alleged hijacking of a taxi in Co Galway last night. Thomas Walsh, 25, of no fixed abode, and Michael Reilly, 30, with an address at Lu Na Greine, Claremorris, Co Mayo, were brought before a special sitting of Galway District Court this evening. Garda Eoin O'Connor told the court that neither made any reply when charged. Both are accused of unlawfully seizing and taking control of a vehicle, under Section 10 of the 1976 Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act. Further charges were brought under the 1961 Road Traffic Act.Mr Reilly is charged with taking possession of the taxi, without the owner’s consent, while Mr Walsh is accused of allowing himself to be carried in the vehicle, without the consent of the owner. The court was told that the men are alleged to have hired a taxi to bring them to Westport last night, before assaulting the driver, ejecting him from the car on the side of the M18 motorway, and seizing the 2017-registered vehicle. The vehicle subsequently failed to stop when pursued by gardaí and when it did stop on the Headford Road in Galway, both men attempted to evade capture, before they were apprehended.Applications for legal aid for both defendants were approved. They were represented at the special sitting by solicitor Sean Acton.An application on behalf of Mr Walsh for bail was refused by Judge Gerard Furlong. He remanded Mr Walsh in custody to appear, via video link, before Galway District Court next week.Bail was granted for Mr Reilly, subject to several conditions. He must stay out of Galway city and county; reside at his home address; observe a curfew from 9pm to 8am each day; sign-on daily at Claremorris Garda Station and ensure that his mobile phone is charged at all times and that he answers any calls to the number provided to gardaí.
One got bail while the second guy, homeless, got remanded. Neither have 'ethnic' surnames afaik.Two men charged over hijacking of taxi in Galway (RTE)QuoteTwo men have been charged in connection with the alleged hijacking of a taxi in Co Galway last night. Thomas Walsh, 25, of no fixed abode, and Michael Reilly, 30, with an address at Lu Na Greine, Claremorris, Co Mayo, were brought before a special sitting of Galway District Court this evening. Garda Eoin O'Connor told the court that neither made any reply when charged. Both are accused of unlawfully seizing and taking control of a vehicle, under Section 10 of the 1976 Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act. Further charges were brought under the 1961 Road Traffic Act.Mr Reilly is charged with taking possession of the taxi, without the owner’s consent, while Mr Walsh is accused of allowing himself to be carried in the vehicle, without the consent of the owner. The court was told that the men are alleged to have hired a taxi to bring them to Westport last night, before assaulting the driver, ejecting him from the car on the side of the M18 motorway, and seizing the 2017-registered vehicle. The vehicle subsequently failed to stop when pursued by gardaí and when it did stop on the Headford Road in Galway, both men attempted to evade capture, before they were apprehended.Applications for legal aid for both defendants were approved. They were represented at the special sitting by solicitor Sean Acton.An application on behalf of Mr Walsh for bail was refused by Judge Gerard Furlong. He remanded Mr Walsh in custody to appear, via video link, before Galway District Court next week.Bail was granted for Mr Reilly, subject to several conditions. He must stay out of Galway city and county; reside at his home address; observe a curfew from 9pm to 8am each day; sign-on daily at Claremorris Garda Station and ensure that his mobile phone is charged at all times and that he answers any calls to the number provided to gardaí.Is that the Grim Reaper following Michael Reilly after he got bail?
