Cork man who searched how to blow up an ATM using air and gas online, jailed for five years online

A MAN who searched the internet to learn how to blow up an ATM on air and gas has been caged for five years.

A court heard that Evan Stubbins was lucky that Gardai on patrol stumbled upon the attempted robbery before the “naive” criminal had a chance to put his plans into action.

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The 24-year-old had air and propane canisters tied to the back of his car when he was stopped by officers who saw him using a screwdriver to try to open the front of a money machine located next to a toilet. station.

Stubbins pleaded guilty in Cork Circuit Criminal Court to possessing an oxypropane cutting tool, a lighter, and various tools with the intent to endanger life or cause serious property injury.

‘SO IGNORANCE’

He also pleaded guilty to causing criminal damage to the AIB ATM at Maxol station in Carr’s Hill, Carrigaline, Cork on 2 August last and to attempted robbery.

He told Gardai that he was trying to steal the machine to get money to pay off a drug debt.

Hearing the case via video link from Cork prison, Stubbins heard that he was lucky that Gardai appeared on the scene when they did, as “a huge explosion would have exploded in his face.”

At the time of the attempted robbery, he was free following a three-month suspended sentence imposed the previous week for handling stolen property.

Judge Sean O’Donnabhain described Stubbin’s investigation into explosives on YouTube and the Internet as “a hodgepodge” of information that was dangerous to attempt, adding: “Such ignorance is an aggravating factor.”

Detective Sergeant Chris Cahill said Gardai on patrol observed a man trying to open the ATM with a screwdriver.

He ran to his car and tried to start it to leave the scene, but was stopped by officers.

‘MASS EXPLOSION’

Sergeant Cahill said: “Stubbins had several canisters that were attached to the back seat of the car.

These were gas and air and together they were explosive substances. They found several other items, including a claw hammer, face mask, overalls, and an oxypropane torch.

Sergeant Cahill said a mechanical engineer examined the canisters and explained that the substances alone were not explosive, but that when mixed they would have caused a “massive and significant explosion.”

While Stubbins had a lighter in his possession, that would not have been necessary to set off the machine, as once the materials were together in the combined space, an explosion was imminent.

In a previous court hearing, the judge was told that the gas station had more than 30,000 liters of fuel in its storage tanks and that the store and other nearby properties could have suffered significant damage.

Defense attorney Ray Boland said that Stubbins, of Church Road, Croom, Co Limerick, had made a naive attempt at a robbery that had no chance of success.

Judge O’Donnabhain said an aggravating factor in the case was that Stubbins had received a suspended sentence in District Court a week earlier.

The judge said: “It is scary that a 24-year-old is preparing such a dangerous brew for the sole purpose of causing an explosion.

“He didn’t seem to realize that no other action or intervention was needed to cause the explosion that would have been caused by science, and events would have overtaken it.”

The judge imposed a sentence of five years for the explosives charge and two years for the other two charges at the same time as the sentence.