Longford man with 109 convictions denied bail after appearing in court

A Longford man with over 100 previous convictions has been denied bail after appearing in court charged with an alleged robbery offence.

Charles Reilly (32) of 2 Palace Crescent, Longford appeared before the local district court for a bail hearing last week.
The defendant is accused of the robbery of a leather wallet from a person containing €200 at Main St, Longford on May 29 last.

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Mr Reilly has also been charged with the alleged robbery of an 84 year-old man in the Market Square area of the county town on July 4.

Mr Reilly applied for bail and he was pesent in court during the 45 minute contested bail hearing.

Detective Garda Orla Geraghty, stated investigating Gardaí were satisfied the defendant was captured on CCTV before and after the alleged robbery.

She outlined the State was objecting to bail given that Mr Reilly had previously attracted 25 bench warrants issued for non attendance at previous various court sittings between 2009 and 2021.

She said the prosecution were also steadfast in their submission given that the accused had 109 previous convictions, 68 of which were committed while on bail.

Det Garda Geraghty took the stand to reveal the State were objecting to bail under both O’Callaghan Rules and Section 2 of the Bail Act.

She said it would be the prosecution’s case the accused approached an elderly 84 year-old man who was returning home after socialising in a nearby pub at 1.50am on July 4, 2025 and 'asked him for the time and then money'.

Det Garda said an alleged robbery occurred when the defendant was 'intimidated' and 'put him in fear' before €90 in cash was taken from his wallet.

She said the victim 'is still in fear' and he had recently told Gardaí he was afraid to leave his home.

Det Garda Geraghty said while the incident was not captured on CCTV, the initial interaction between the accused and the victim, about 10 metres away, was captured.

She stated further footage showed the accused turning in the opposite direction following the robbery and walking away.
Det Garda Geraghty said Mr Reilly was arrested for the purpose of a drug search the following day, July 5, and Gardaí recovered clothing from him, which they believed was the same 'captured on CCTV' the night of the alleged robbery.

However, Counsel for the defendant, Andrea Callan BL, said the footage was of 'extremely poor quality'.

"There is no way to identify anyone in that CCTV and they appear to have their faces covered.

"I would say they are not identifiable."

Ms Callan stated the identification of her client was very weak and she maintained "the strength of the evidence was very weak".

Judge Bernadette Owens, in delivering her verdict, said the State had not met the threshold based on their evidence under O’Callaghan Rules, however, she noted his bench warrant history and decided they had under Section 2 of the Bail Act.

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Judge Owens decided to remand Mr Reilly in custody until a sitting of Longford District Court on August 11 next and she adjourned the case.