A convicted bank robber, Mr Alan Freeman aged 34 years, who stole 42 guns from an arms dealer here in Co Tipperary, will now spend less time in prison following his legal appeal today.
Mr Freeman, who previously resided at Deansrath Grove, Clondalkin, Co. Dublin, failed to have his conviction quashed; however, following his appeal today, he will now be released two years earlier.
His original conviction followed a break-in during the early hours of Jan 9th, 2009, when, in the company of other masked men, he broke into the residence of a licensed firearms dealer living close to Carrick-On-Suir in Co. Tipperary. Having threatened gun dealer Mr Thomas Keevan, his partner, their daughter and a close friend with a sawn-off shotgun, the men locked the latter into a gun safe for several hours; making off with the 42 weapons.
Three weeks into his trial Mr Freeman admitted stealing the guns and was, for his part, jailed for seven years. This sentence was later increased to further incarceration of 13-year, after a previously suspended sentence for involvement in a bank robbery in Abbeyleix, Co Laois, had been taken into consideration.
His lawyers today appealed the conviction for the gun theft, but same was dismissed. However his lawyers also argued that Mr Freeman’s combined sentence was excessive and did not give full consideration to the principle of totality, which is normally applied when multiple sentences are similarly imposed.
It was to this legal argument that the sitting three-judge panel agreed and thus suspended the final two years of Mr Freeman’s overall sentence.
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