Man arrested in connection with Cooper stabbing

Gardaí investigating a serious assault on well-known Dublin Gaelic footballer Jonny Cooper in which he was repeatedly stabbed last weekend have arrested a man.

Mr Cooper was found injured on the pavement on Dorset Street at about 5.30am last Saturday. CCTV images recorded at the scene show him sitting on the steps at the front of a Georgian house. A man is seen walking up the steps behind him and apparently leaning in to slash or stab Mr Cooper a number of times in the face and body.

The victim was apparently resting as he was making his way home from a social event after his club team Na Fianna was knocked out of the Dublin championships. However, he was so traumatised by the attack he could not remember it in detail.

Gardaí in Mountjoy have arrested a 31-year-old man in relation to the incident. He was detained at Mountjoy Garda station under Section 4 of Criminal Justice Act, 1984.

Gardaí are continuing to appeal for witnesses, and have urged anybody with information to contact Mountjoy garda station on (01)6668600 or the Garda confidential line 1800 666 111.

A Garda source said the man who was arrested has a history of violent crime including assault, robberies, car-jackings and making threats to others while armed with knives.

He has spent time in prison, including one lengthy sentence for a crime spree in which he beat one man for his mobile phone, stamped on a woman’s head during the random street attack and carried out several smash and grab robberies on retail businesses.

The suspect is currently before the courts on serious charges unrelated to the stabbing of Mr Cooper, which cannot be disclosed for legal reasons.