Posted by Woman said ‘let my fella go’ and kicked two gardaí in face after gun found in bin
• 3h ago
A woman kicked two gardaí in the face after intervening in the arrest of a man who was suspected of throwing a gun into a bin.
A court heard Laura Minto (27) told gardaí to “let my fella go” before punching one officer and kicking both as she was restrained.
Minto was jailed for three months. Judge John Hughes sentenced her to four months in prison with the final month suspended.
Minto, of Liscarne Gardens, Clondalkin, pleaded guilty to assaulting gardaí and criminal damage to one victim’s jacket.
Dublin District Court heard gardaí on patrol at Liffey Street on May 10, 2020, saw a dispute between a number of people. A man was fleeing on foot when he discarded an object into a bin, which gardaí found to be a firearm with 15 rounds of ammunition.
He was arrested and the garda secured the gun on the patrol car.
Minto, who was in the man’s company, became “distressed and agitated” at his arrest.
She said, “Let my fella go, you will not arrest him” and attempted to intervene, the court heard.
The arresting garda, who was holding on to the man, tried to keep Minto at a safe distance but she punched him to the side of the face and grabbed the sleeve of his jacket, which ripped. While she was being restrained on the ground, she kicked him and a second garda in the face.
The first garda suffered minor soft tissue injuries but did not require medical attention.
Minto apologised profusely, her lawyer said. She had been addicted to crack cocaine and went “completely off the rails.” The trigger was a family bereavement and she was taking drugs to numb the pain.
She was now off drugs and a “different woman”.
Judge Hughes said kicking someone in the head was very serious “whether it’s a male or a female administering the kick”. The officers were fortunate they did not suffer serious injuries, he said.
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