A man who asked his sister to sell herself for sex to get him money for drugs set fire to her home when she refused.
Glen Friel appeared at Letterkenny Circuit Court after pleading guilty to setting fire to his sister’s rented home at Straleeny, Killybegs on April 22, 2020.
The court heard how the 24-year-old accused arrived at the house and wanted his sister to give him money for drugs and even asked her to sell her body for money and threatened to kill her if she didn’t.
The terrified woman asked her mother to call Gardai and Friel then managed to barricade himself into the house.
His sister left the house which she had rented for five years and he smashed it up and after setting fire to the house, Friel also fled.
The house belonged to a local man, Conal Doherty, and was worth €130,000.
The court heard that €79,450 of damage was caused to the house and that the contents of the house was not insured.
When arrested, Friel made certain admissions and said he wanted to start the fire to bring him “joy and revenge.”
He told Gardai he was hoping to get revenge on his sister Linda as she had been a bitch to him that day.
“I do feel a bit angry but I’m sorry at the same time,” he told Gardai.
Garda Sergeant Stuart Doyle said Friel admitted starting the fire with a lighter but did not think he had started it in the bedroom of the house as the fire service had suspected.
The court was told that Friel, of no fixed abode, has 12 previous convictions including convictions for threatening and abusive behaviour, assault, possession of drugs and intoxication in a public place.
The injured party, Mr Doherty, did not want to come to court or give a victim impact statement.
Barrister for the accused, Mr Colm Smyth, SC, said his client had a number of issues.
He suffered from post traumatic stress disorder after his brother took his own life when Friel was aged just 9 and he was also sexually assaulted when he was a young boy.
He no longer speaks to his parents and had been living rough in Dublin.
Friel, who has been in custody since last October, took to the witness stand and and said he was very sorry to the man whose house he destroyed and promised to go to all appointments.
Asking Judge John Aylmer to be as lenient as possible, Mr Smyth said his client is indeed a troubled individual with a number of diagnoses including PTSD and a personality disorder.
He has expressed a desire to get back on track and engage with various agencies, Mr Smyth adding that if he does not he will end up in a very difficult position and his life will be cut short.
“He doesn’t immediately give one confidence but I think he has a lot of outlying issues,” added his barrister.
Judge Aylmer adjourned the case until later in the week requesting time to read the psychiatric report on Friel in more detail.