Kilkenny Court issues bench warrant for man convicted of gate theft

Kilkenny District Court has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of a man convicted of theft and criminal damage.
The man was convicted of cutting down and removing a gate which had been erected by a community farming group to keep livestock off the road.

Charged was Uwe Kroske, Walshestown, Ballymurphy, Co Carlow. He denied the charges but was not in court for the hearing, when he was represented by solicitor John O’Sullivan.

Maura Redmond, a member of the Blackstairs Farming Group, told the court that members of the group put up a gate on the mountain but ‘about 10 days later it was gone’.
She said the stone for the side pillars and the gate had cost €519 to purchase. All the work was carried out by local people and there was no estimate put on that work.

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Gated for 102 years
It had been necessary to erect the gate to keep livestock from coming off the mountain commonage and onto the public road. As a commonage people have shares in the land and the lane is ‘there for everyone’, Ms Redmond said.

There is a house further along the lane where Uwe Kroske lives, Ms Redmond said. He does not own the laneway.
Asked by Inspector Alma Molloy if Mr Kroske was consulted about the new gate Ms Redmond said he was not, and that there had ‘always been’ a gate on the lane, and from her mother; she knew this was going back 102 years.

When it was observed the gate was gone Ms Redmond reported it to gardaí. She said the gate was not returned, the gardaí had to go and get it back.
No one had been given permission to remove the gate, Ms Redmond said.

Garda Peter Shortall investigated the matter. He said Ms Redmond sent him a picture of the gates in the back of Mr Kroske’s jeep, outside his home.

Found in jeep
On October 25, 2022, the garda obtained a search warrant to search Mr Kroske’s property. With other gardaí he went to the property and observed the stolen property in the back of the jeep.
Garda Shortall spoke to Mr Kroske, cautioned him, and informed him about the search warrant.

Mr Kroske told the garda he was waiting for the owner of the gates to come and get them. He agreed to drive back down the lane to where the property was taken from and he left it back there.
On his return home Mr Kroske was arrested. He made no reply after caution.

Garda Shortall said Mr Kroske’s home is on the Blackstairs Mountains in a remote location.
Mr Kroske was taken to Carlow Garda Station where he was interviewed. Garda Shortall read a memo of the interview into the court record.

During the interview Mr Kroske told gardaí that the gate had been ‘illegally erected’ on a lane that he built and maintained, costing him ‘thousands of euro every year’.
He also told gardaí he had removed the gate using a consaw. He admitted he did not own the gate and that he was waiting for the owner to collect it.
When it was pointed out to him by gardaí that the gate was not locked, Mr Kroske made no reply.

Fencing had also been cut, gardaí said, and Mr Kroske said there had been no fence before. He said a number of friends had helped him ‘or I should say guarded me because I am able to handle a consaw’.
He gave the names of three men to gardaí.

Garda Shortall said Mr Kroske refused to sign the memo of the interview. It was signed by the two gardaí present.

Corroborating evidence was also given in court by Garda Robert Rasmusen and Garda Brian Wilkinson.

Solicitor John O’Sullivan said he only gets ‘sporadic’ mail from his client. He did not mount a defence.
Bench Warrant

Judge Geraldine Carthy convicted Mr Kroske of theft under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act and criminal damage.
A bench warrant for the arrest of Mr Kroske was issued so the case may proceed to sentencing and finalisation.