A man jailed for four years for stabbing his girlfriend has been handed another three years behind bars after threatening to kill her if she did not lie about the incident.
Jason McDonagh phoned Shauna Greene 18 times from Castlerea Prison pleading with her to change her statement.
The 34-year-old, who has 134 previous convictions, also sent her cards and letters from prison warning her to lie.
McDonagh, of Lawne Park, Ballyshannon, appeared before Letterkenny Circuit Court after pleading guilty to intent to pervert the course of justice, contrary to Common Law.
He was charged that between May 25, 2023 and July 13, 2023, he did make from Castlerea Prison in County Roscommon, phone calls to Shauna Greene which had a tendency to pervert the course of justice in that he continuously telephoned Ms Greene and asked for her to withdraw a complaint in relation to a section 3 Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997, which was before the court, asked her to withdraw, change her statement, to state that it was not true, and go to court and tell the judge likewise.
In March, 2024, McDonagh was given a four-year prison sentence for assaulting Ms Greene and causing her harm.
It related to an incident in May, 2023 when he stabbed the victim five times.
He grabbed a knife and began stabbing her and she said all she could feel were sharp pains through her puffer jacket and in her neck. As paramedics attended her, she asked them if she was going to die.
When interviewed by Gardai, McDonagh initially said he did not stab Ms Greene and said a glass had simply been broken in their flat.
However, he eventually pleaded guilty and was jailed for five years with the last 12 months suspended by Judge John Aylmer in March, 2024.
McDonagh appeared at Letterkenny Circuit Court after pleading guilty to the single charge of intent to pervert the course of justice.
His former partner Ms Greene was present in court along with her new partner to hear the case.
Garda Paul Corcoran from Ballyshannon Garda Station said Ms Greene had attended the station and told how McDonagh had contacted her from prison on a number of occasions asking her to drop the charges and say he was not involved.
Ms Greene said he warned her that if she did not do as he said he would beat her again and she said she believed McDonagh would kill her if he got out of prison.
McDonagh also sent Ms Greene three letters and a card while transcripts of 18 phonecalls made by McDonagh were recorded and downloaded by the Governor of Castlerea Prison.
In her victim impact statement, Ms Greene, 27, said she was terrified of McDonagh saying he told her to go to the Garda station and tell them she made up her story.
Ms Greene said he pretended to contact other people so he could get in touch with her and told her she was dead when he got out and that she now feared for her life.
She added that she now changes her appearance when she is out as she fears meeting McDonagh’s family and they tell him where she is.
“I know he will come and find me. He does not like women…he has promised me he will come and kill me,” she added.
The court was told McDonagh has 143 previous convictions for a range of offences including assault, public order, theft, breach of barring orders, trespassing, criminal damage and obstruction.
Barrister for the accused, Mr Peter Nolan, BL, instructed by solicitor Rory O’Brien , said his client made an early plea even though it would have been proven due to the recordings of the telephone calls from prison.
He said his client understands the relationship with Ms Greene is now finished and has said he will have nothing to do with her on his release and that he apologised to her for any stress he caused to her or her mother.
Judge John Aylmer said the threat against Ms Greene had to be viewed in the context of the offence (the assault during which he stabbed Ms Greene) he had just committed at the time.
He stressed that he was in no sense sentencing him again for the stabbing of Ms Greene but he was considering the charge of intent to pervert the course of justice which led the victim to believe she would be murdered.
He added that has to be considered in the context of the stabbing event for which she was trying to recover and he had also to consider where on the scale to place it.
He said he placed it in the mid range and said he was constraining himself by not putting it higher than the headline sentence in the previous assault case.
He said due to the intimidating and frightening nature of the threats, it could be argued that the incident could be placed in the higher bracket but added that he would constrain himself.
He told McDonagh he took the appropriate action by entering a guilty plea but adding it was an “open and shut case” because the phonecalls were recorded.
He saved Ms Greene the trauma of another trial as well as saving the state time and effort and for this he reduced the sentence to one of four years in prison to run consecutive with the current sentence of four years.
However, Judge Aylmer said he had to look at the totality principle and although he was not sure if there was room for optimism, he had to try and encourage it.
In the interest of rehabilitation, he said he was suspending the last 12 months of that four years sentence in return for signing a bond to keep the peace.
He also made an order that McDonagh is not to come within one kilometre of Ms Greene’s place of work or residence upon release.
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