A FORMER two-time all-star Limerick hurler appeared in court yesterday charged in connection with an alleged hit-and-run incident last year.
Mark Foley (35) is charged with failing to stop at the scene of an accident, failing to remain at the scene of an accident, failing to give appropriate information to a garda, and failing to report a road traffic accident in October 2010. He denies the charges.
Gardaí told Newcastle West district court that the former Limerick hurling captain told them that on the night of the alleged incident he had “hit a man” at 2.30am while driving on the N21.
The court heard Mr Foley, of Abbeyview, Adare, told gardaí: “I hit a man who was walking on the road. He was just inside the yellow line. I was driving my own car. I went forward 50 yards. I stopped and went back to see if he was okay. I then took him to hospital.”
Garda Brian O’Leary told the court that about 3.30am on October 16th, 2010, Roxboro Road Garda station was contacted by the Mid-Western Regional Hospital about two men who had presented there following a road accident. Garda O’Leary said when he arrived at the hospital he noticed damage to Mr Foley’s car.
“I noticed there was damage to the passenger side, the window and the wing. The windscreen was cracked, there was extensive damage to the passenger wing and the wing mirror was missing,” he added.
The garda agreed with Turlough Herbert, solicitor for Mr Foley, that the accused was found by gardaí in a waiting room off the emergency department of the hospital. He also agreed that gardaí had “no difficulty” in finding Mr Foley and that the accused “wasn’t trying to evade” gardaí.
Garda O’Leary arrested and cautioned Mr Foley at the hospital.
The injured party, Arturas Grabliauskas (24), originally from Lithuania but living in Rathkeale at the time, told the court the last thing he remembered was walking into a pub in Newcastle West at around 8pm on October 15th, 2010, and waking up in hospital the following day. “My left hand was broken and my left leg was broken. I was detained in hospital for three days,” he told the court.
Under cross-examination by Mr Herbert, the injured party said he didn’t know if he had consumed alcohol on the night.
The case was adjourned and is due to resume next month.