A 39-year-old man charged in connection with the alleged stabbing of two pigs at Thornton Hall in Dublin last June has been ordered to stay away from all International Protection sites.
Darren Jackson, of Rivermeade Drive, Rivermeade in Dublin, appeared before Balbriggan District Court, charged with two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to, or endangering the health or welfare of an animal at Thornton Hall, Killsallaghan, Swords in Co Dublin, on 26 June 2024.
Mr Jackson was also charged with stealing a set of keys on the same site the day before, on 25 June 2024.
Garda Philip Walsh of Swords Garda Station told the court that he charged Mr Jackson before the court and that Mr Jackson made no reply after caution.
Judge Dermot Dempsey granted Mr Jackson bail on his own bond of €500 but directed that he must sign on at Swords Garda Station twice a week, that he notify gardaí of any change of address and that he stay away from all International Protection sites.
When asked by Judge Dempsey if he understood the terms of the bond and the conditions, Mr Jackson replied “yes Judge”.
Mr Jackson is due back in Ballbrigan District Court on 28 January.
At around 5.30pm on the evening of 26 June last year gardaí were called out to Thornton Hall in Killsallaghan in Co Dublin.
It is alleged that two injured pigs were discovered there, and that they were attended to by a vet and subsequently euthanised.
It is understood that a third pig was unharmed and was taken into care.
Thornton Hall site plans
It was announced last year that the Government intended to develop the site as an International Protection Accommodation centre.
In May last year, the Department of Integration confirmed that it was working with the Irish Prison Service and the Department of Justice on plans to use a portion of the State-owned land [at Thornton Hall] to provide large-scale tented accommodation for those seeking international protection.
In August, the department put in place a ministerial order to provide a planning exemption for works on the Thornton Hall site, and initial works commenced.
However, in October, a judicial review was brought by representatives of local residents into the procedures that were applied in developing the Ministerial Order and this led to any further works on the site being paused.
A spokesperson for the Department of Integration confirmed that it had “decided to set aside the ministerial order in November 2024, and to undertake some administrative updates and develop a replacement order for this site.”
“That process is under way, and works at the Thornton Hall site will remain paused while this is completed,” they said.
