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A man assaulted a judge, a lawyer and his estranged wife with a fake pistol and a deceptive pipe bomb during a “terrifying” siege in a Dublin court, his sentencing hearing has been told.
During a hearing in December 2018, Edmund Dunican, 47, told the court that he had a “problem” with an opposition lawyer, Lisa Daly, before pulling a “realistic” firearm from his briefcase and threatening her with she. Court heard today.
At the time, Dunican was wearing an elaborate device around his neck that looked like a tube bomb. The court heard that Dunican, an installer by profession, made the dummy bomb at home.
The judge in the courtroom refused to leave when Dunican told him he could go. Instead, she repeatedly asked him to drop the gun and assisted the other two women, at one point making sure they both had a glass of water.
The 17-minute siege ended after an armed Garda negotiator persuaded Dunican to hand over the weapon and let the women go. The court building was evacuated and surrounded by armed Garda units during the incident, while an army unit was called in to evaluate the device.
Dunican, based in Stadium Business Park, Ballycoolin, Dublin, pleaded guilty to one count of carrying an imitation firearm with criminal intent in Smithfield on December 20, 2018.
It is a crime that carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison and a mandatory minimum penalty of five years. Dunican has no prior convictions.
Garda Detective Shane Connolly told accuser Anne-Marie Lawlor that Ms. Daly had had several dealings during the court proceedings with Dunican, who was representing himself.
On the day in question, Ms Daly told the court that it was her last day as she was going to become a lawyer.
When the Dunican matter was brought to court, he pulled out the imitation firearm and said to Ms. Daly: “Did I hear you say that today is your last day? You have no idea Lisa, you have no idea. ”
As Ms. Daly crouched in her chair, the judge repeatedly told Mr. Dunican, “Put down your gun, sir, please.”
The court clerk pressed the panic alarm and the Gardaí were called to court by the tannoy system, while Dunican said: “It is too late for the judge on duty.”
Dunican said that the clerk and the judicial assistant could leave the court and the judge could leave the court, telling him that he did not want to do him any harm, but the judge replied: “I am not leaving.”
The judge continued reasoning with Dunican until an armed Gardaí entered the court and a negotiator convinced Dunican to surrender.
Ms Daly told Gardaí that it was a terrifying experience and that she believed Dunican would shoot her in the head or detonate a real bomb. Dunican’s wife said she was “petrified” and “frozen with fear” during the ordeal.
The court heard that the bomb looked realistic and was equipped with a metal tube and a working red and green light. The imitation firearm resembled a semi-automatic pistol.
The judge told gardaí that Dunican told him he could leave but that he stayed “to defuse the situation as best he could.”
She told Gardaí that the incident was “surreal” and that she had never experienced anything like it. She said at no point did Dunican say why he was doing it or what he wanted to achieve.
Ms. Daly and Dunican’s wife gave the court statements about the impact of the victim, but the judge declined to make one.
Fiona Murphy, in defense, said she “values the seriousness of the matter in court.”
He delivered a detailed psychological report and a letter of apology from his client.
The court heard that Dunican previously ran a successful business, but that his life “fell apart” in recent years.
Ms Murphy said Dunican had become increasingly stressed in the months leading up to the offense, suffering from heart problems and “at the end of his rope.”
“He was a man on the edge,” he said.
Dunican has been in custody since the day of the crime.
Judge Patricia Ryan postponed the matter until next Tuesday, January 26, for sentencing.
In a 17-minute recording of the siege, played in court, the judge repeatedly appealed to Dunican to lower the gun, before asking him what was hanging around his neck.
Dunican replied, “You don’t want to know a judge. The guards will understand. ”When the court building was evacuated and armed Gardaí surrounded the building, the judge obtained permission from Dunican to make a call.
He called the court’s office urgently requesting the Gardaí’s presence, telling them: “They will be too late. Do you understand? ”During the incident, Ms. Daly was crouched next to her desk, crying and trying to call her husband.
At one point, Dunican asked her if she had children.
An armed Gardaí came onto the court shortly after, causing Dunican to roar: “Back off guys. If I fall you go. If I fall, all of you are gone. ”A trained negotiator compromised with Dunican and the judge was removed from court before Dunican finally agreed to put down the gun.
“My work here is finished today,” Dunican told gardaí. “I have achieved what I wanted to achieve.” In relation to Ms. Daly, he told Gardaí: “I will destroy her. Not here today, but I will destroy her. Now I have the tools to do it. ”
When Dunican was arrested and his imitation firearm was taken from him, he was heard saying, “I apologize. There is nothing in it. “
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