A 69-year-old man who was sent to jail for a month in a row over a boundary fence on his land has been moved to an open prison.Mr Jimmy Dunne was moved to Shelton Abbey prison in Co Wicklow yesterday after his family expressed fears for his health.
Mr Dunne, from the Pound, Ballybrittas, Co Laois, had vowed to go on hunger strike before he was sent to Mountjoy Prison on Thursday, but prison authorities said yesterday he was taking food normally.
The pensioner received the one-month sentence after he defied a court order to remove an eight-foot fence which is in breach of planning laws.
Mr Dunne presented himself by appointment to Portarlington Garda station on Thursday on foot of a warrant for his arrest.
The row dates back to 1996 when Mr Dunne put up the fence by his home. It subsequently became the subject of a dispute between him, his neighbours and the local county council.
He spent five days in prison in 1999 when he failed to comply with an enforcement notice to take down the fence or pay a fine of £725 (€920).
The case came up again in Portarlington Court last year, when he was given until March to remove the fence or pay the fine. So far, Mr Dunne's failure to comply with the order has cost him thousands of euro in fines and costs as well as the month in prison.
