Search
23 Oct 2025
Search
23 Oct 2025
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
Image for illustration purposes
Forensic tests are required in the cases of three men accused of having fireworks at the National Ploughing Championships.
The men are accused of possessing assorted fireworks which included Bad Boy Thunder Rockets, Fireshot roman candles and Snakebite fireworks at the National Ploughing Championships in 2022.
Michael Ward, 34, of 30 Palace Crescent. Ardnacassa, Longford is accused of possessing fireworks at Gate 20A, Green Car Park, Ratheniska on September 21, 2022. He is also accused of possessing fireworks at the same location on September 22, 2022.
Martin Maughan, 34, of 1 Silloge Green, Swords Road, Swords, Dublin is also accused of having fireworks at Gate 20A, Green Car Park, Ratheniska, on September 21, 2022.
Davey Joyce, 28, of 35 Palace Crescent, Ardnacassa, Longford is accused of having fireworks at the National Ploughing Championships on September 22, 2022. He is further charged with having fireworks at the Gate 20A, Green Car Park, Ratheniska on September 21, 2022.
Garda Sergeant JJ Kirby explained that disclosure was outstanding due to backlogs in testing at the forensic laboratory.
“We are awaiting a forensic report to establish whether these instruments are fireworks,” he explained.
He said district court level requests to the forensic laboratory were taking around nine months to return.
Suzanne Dooner BL requested a strike out on behalf of her clients due to the delays with disclosure.
Judge Nicola Andrews said she wouldn’t strike out the matter but instead marked the case peremptory against the State in relation to the first and second defendant.
She adjourned the case of the third defendant but didn’t mark it peremptory as he wasn’t in court.
All three men are due before a sitting of Portlaoise District Court on March 25.
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
