A MAN who stole guns from a Tipperary house has been given a chance to avoid a three year jail sentence by staying out of further trouble. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Derek Kinch had disposed of the weapons after the burglary and, over a month later, they were found sawn off in a stolen car in Co Clare.
Supt Michael Murphy said the burglary came to light when Thurles gardai gave Kinch sanctuary in the local station. His home had been besieged by his former girlfriend's "quite violent" relatives after he had a row with her.
Kinch told gardai he had nothing to fear from her relatives because he had two guns which he had taken some weeks previously.
Kinch (26) with an address at Rossa Street, Thurles, admitted burgling the home of Mr Patrick Maher of Craige, Ballyclerihan, Co Tipperary, and stealing the guns on a date unknown between March 1st and April 29th, 1995. Kinch previously worked for Mr Maher.