Man in the Midlands at centre of alleged intimidation campaign handed suspended prison term and driving ban

A Longford man alleged to have been involved in a campaign of intimidation aimed at halting land sales has been handed a suspended prison sentence and banned from driving for eight years after he was found to be over four times the legal limit to drive.

Seamus Kane (53) Ardnagullion, Edgeworthstown, Co Longford was handed the lengthy disqualification after he pleaded guilty to drink driving and being found at the wheel without insurance on June 18, 2022 at Toneywarden, Granard, Co Longford.

The court was told when Mr Kane was stopped and later arrested, a returned a reading of 236mg per 100ml of blood, putting him four times over the blood alcohol 50mg legal limit to drive.

The Longford man had previously been ordered to undertake a pro social driving course in a programme that aims to target high risk groups of drivers who are initially identified through the justice and legal system.

In June 2019, Mr Kane was jailed for contempt for breaching court orders intended to prevent interference with a receiver’s efforts to sell lands in Co Longford.

Receiver Myles Kirby brought the application as part of his efforts to recover judgment for more than €4.97 million obtained by the Revenue in July 2009 against Mr Kane's brother, John Alex Kane, a car dealer also known as Alex Kane.

At a sitting of Longford District Court yesterday (Tuesday), defence solicitor Fiona Baxter handed in a certificate confirming Mr Kane’s attendance and subsequent completion of the aforementioned course.

Ms Baxter also alluded to how a probation report handed into the court underlined her client’s willingness to turn his life around.

“He (Mr Kane) hasn’t come to the attention of gardaí since and has firmly learned his lesson,” she said.

“He just wants to put this behind him and move on.”

Ms Baxter said Mr Kane’s undertaking of the driving course had also brought with it a sobering reality about the dangers of breaching the State’s road traffic laws.

“It (course) was very intense and practical,” she said.

“Road traffic victims took a prominent role in the course and that has had a profound effect on Mr Kane.”

In passing sentence, Judge Bernadette Owens said the court had the benefit of a “useful” probation report, adding however that in light of Mr Kane’s “considerable” previous convictions some form of custodial sentence was inevitable.

She consequently sentenced Mr Kane to five months in prison for the no insurance charge, suspending that term for a period of two years along with an eight year driving disqualification.

A second five month prison sentence, suspended for two years was handed down for the drink driving charge as well as a six year driving ban.

A further no driving licence charge was taken into consideration with both sentences being ordered to run concurrently.