Mayo gardaí forced to isolate after arrest of man awaiting Covid test

A MAN arrested for an alleged burglary in south Mayo was in court the following morning, at a time when he was due to undergo a test for Covid-19.

The accused failed to tell gardaí about the situation, resulting in a number of members having to go into self-isolation.

On receiving bail at Castlebar court, which heard a test was being arranged for today (Thursday), he was instructed to inform the arresting garda of his test result.

Gardaí had objected to bail following the accused's arrest on Tuesday for an offence alleged to have occurred on January 15. He appeared in court yesterday.

In the course of submissions on his behalf, the court heard he had been self-isolating and awaiting a test that morning.

Judge Fiona Lydon, in adjourning the case to April 21, granted bail on a number of conditions, including that he reside at an approved address in Dublin.

She directed him to leave Co. Mayo once his test was done and to stay out of the county other than for court appearances and should a medical emergency involving his partner arise, for which the gardaí are to receive advance notice of his attendance.

He was also to notify the arresting garda of his Covid test result.

Bail money handed into the court was sanitised, as was the area of the courtroom in which he sat, masked, twice – first by a member of the Courts Service and again by a garda.