Longford Gardaí warn of "escalating tensions" if hatchet-accused returns to estate

A Longford couple who say they were forced to leave their home in Palace Drive after fearing for the physical safety of their young children following an alleged hatchet attack on John Keenan last June, told a recent sitting of the Circuit Court that Longford County Council’s housing department have refused to transfer them to a new area unless they first move back into the house from which they bolted.

The court heard that the council continued to insist they return despite grave concerns from Gardaí that tensions would escalate considerably within the estate in the event of the couple moving back.

In delivering a summary of events to the court, Barrister for the State, Shane Geraghty, said John Andrew and Margaret Doyle had been “jointly indicted with an allegation of a section three assault causing harm to John Keenan and also charged with producing an article capable of inflicting serious injury, namely a knife.”

This incident is alleged to have occurred on June 3 2024 and the Doyles were returned for trial in relation to the matter. The court heard they fled their home “on June 3 or 4”.

Mr Geraghty BL added that the court had received notification regarding an application to permit Mr and Mrs Doyle, who are currently residing in Portlaoise, to return to Longford.

Mr Geraghty said Garda Brendan Lynn of Longford Garda Station had expressed “serious concerns for the safety of the Doyle family, however, should they move back to that address.”

Garda Lynn's cause for concern was based on the fact that the house was within 100 metres of John Keenan’s family members, John Keenan being the man they stand accused of having assaulted in June last year.

Further exacerbating concerns is the fact that John Keenan himself had just recently received an 8.5 year prison sentence for the October 2024 stabbing of Patrick Stokes, who is married to John Doyle’s sister, Carmel.

During proceedings, the court heard that the Doyle children had previously been moved from schools where the Keenan children were also in attendance and that the school in which the Doyle’s eldest daughter was currently enrolled was one that “no members of the Keenan family” attended.

Christina Burke, barrister for Margaret Doyle, said “that was why the parents had placed their daughter there.” Ms Burke added that the family had resided at 5 Palace Drive for five years and had “several meetings with the council who were “anxious the Doyles would live in the house.”

She explained that the Doyles had left the house “for peace” and that Margaret was pregnant at the time and had suffered a very traumatic pregnancy.

Judge Connolly remarked that he was “baffled” as to why the matter was only brought to the court on the last day of a four week sitting. In response Ms Burke explained that the Doyles, just three days earlier, had received correspondence from the School Education Officer requesting an urgent meeting as the Doyle children had not been in attendance since September.

After taking to the stand to give evidence, Margaret Doyle, was asked by Judge Connolly why they originally left Palace Drive.

“We were being threatened in the area so the safest thing was to leave with our children” she explained.

“Threatened by other families?” the Judge clarified, to which Ms Doyle simply replied, “yes.”

When Judge Connolly inquired if Longford County Council had given them another place to live, Ms Doyle said, “We’ve been in contact with them numerous times but they haven’t really helped us resolve the situation. They boarded up the house for the safety of the house but they want us to move back in before they can give us a transfer.”

Mrs Doyle explained they moved to Longford town’s Pierce View Estate to live with her in-laws and that they had remained there until June of this year, at which point they moved in with her parents in Portlaoise.

She said they had been trying to return to Longford so the kids could start the new school term but that the matter was adjourned by the court.

Judge Connolly said he “didn’t love the idea” of the Doyles moving to 5 Palace Drive and told Mr Geraghty BL that he was considering “issuing a summons for the housing officer.”

Taking to the stand, Detective Sergeant Keelin Brennan gave context to the existing tensions between the Keenans and the Doyles and recalled “a flashpoint of an incident between two females in June” which then led to “the allegation that Mr Doyle struck Mr Keenan across the head with a hatchet” outside 5 Palace Crescent.

At this point, Mr Geraghty BL intervened to ask Det Sgt Brennan to refer to the book of evidence which contained a Facebook post that was published under the username ‘Andrew Margaret Doyle’.

The post contained a picture of a man wielding an axe accompanied by the message, “Are you getting your memory back now and just remembering what happened now? God help ya. I’m the boss giving you night terrors, can’t sleep poor auld fella and as I said your wife was bait to death and you done s***e about it, and my wife was touched, we all know the outcome and I didnt know you was out of the town yesterday but the dirty rat that I made a child of yesterday told you, listen I’m your boss!”

Mr Geraghty noted the element of goading, and again referenced the concerns of the Gardaí over the return of the Doyles to the estate. Det Sgt Brennan said the address the Doyle's were applying to return to meant it would be “literally impossible for them not to have any daily contact with the Keenan family.” He added, “from a Garda perspective, it would be in no way a suitable place, and I would feel very strongly that it is absolutely not an environment the applicants should be bringing their children into.”

Judge Connolly acknowledged that Mrs Doyle had no wish to reoccupy the house and that it was the housing officer who was insisting on such. He added that returning the children to school was now of paramount importance.

In pointing out that Longford may not be the best place for the children to resume their education, Det Sgt Brennan stated that schools had been “a flashpoint for incidents” in the feud as members of rival families were “meeting each other there daily; it’s unavoidable.”

Detective Sergeant Brennan also expressed concern that the situation had now “possibly escalated” due to Mr Keenan himself receiving a sentence for his attack on Mr Doyle’s in-law Patrick Stokes. He added, “They (the Doyles) have given evidence in the past that they're fearful if they reside at that location, it’ll cause further instances of violence. It's not one sided. It's absolutely very violent on both sides.”

During his time on the stand, the detective sergeant also told the court, that “Mr Keenan had suffered very serious injuries as a result of the incident before the court and the state's case is that those injuries were allegedly perpetrated by the applicants (i.e. Mr and Mrs Doyle)”

He pointed out that Mr Keenan’s father resides behind 5 Palace Crescent, one of his brothers within 200m of it, and another within 100m.

Recalling how when the Doyles resided in Pearse View after leaving Palace Drive, they phoned the Gardaí “on numerous occasions fearful of issues in relation to threats.” He said they alleged that “persons had called to their house and threatened to damage it.”

As Mr Doyle's barrister Martin Durack questioned Detective Sergeant Brennan on his views of the situation, Judge Connolly intervened, before subsequently adding, “there's absolutely no way I'm making an order for a return to 5 Palace Drive today - absolutely none - based of the Garda evidence I've heard.”

Judge Connolly said he would instruct that an order be prepared for the Garda Liaison Officer to request from the housing officer - at the behest of the Circuit Court and in the interest of public safety - to facilitate a housing transfer request from John Andrew and Margaret Doyle, for a property outside of Longford Town without the necessity of them having to first reoccupy 5 Palace Drive.

The application was adjourned to Mullingar Circuit Court

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