Jury finds Mayo 'victim of lockdown' not guilty of criminal damage to telecommunications equipment

A man with mental health issues who damaged telecommunications equipment at various locations in Mayo more than two years ago was ‘another victim of Covid and lockdown’, a court has heard.

Adrian Behan, aged 44, formerly of Ballyfarna, Belcarra, but now residing at Newport Road, Castlebar, appeared before Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court on multiple charges of criminal damage and theft.

A jury took less than 20 minutes to return a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity in the case.

The court heard that Behan, who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, fell through the cracks during the Covid-19 pandemic and his treatment was disrupted.

He was suffering a mental health episode when he committed 23 acts of criminal damage and 10 theft offences at various Mayo locations including Lavybeg, Charlestown; Harrington’s Quarries, Kilkelly; Brookhill, Claremorris; Carrowmore, Manulla; Ballyclogher, Balla; Cloonkeen, Castlebar; Croaghmoyle Booster Station, Castlebar; Churchfield, Knock, and Knockmoyleen, Ballyheane.

Three incidents also occurred at Leenaun, Clifden, Co. Galway.

The offending took place between September 8, 2023, and October 31, 2023.

All of the incidents involved equipment belonging to telecommunications companies or service providers such as the ESB, Eir, Vodafone, Mayo County Council, Three Ireland, and RTÉ.

The property damaged included GPS cables, metre boxes, fibre optic cables, wiring, electrical fuses, antenna cables, fuse boxes and MCBs.

The theft matters related to 21 electric fuses owned by ESB, taken from various locations, and 20 metres of fibre optic cable that was the property of Eir.

The damage and thefts led to a number of telecommunications outages and loss of service.

The incidents saw a garda operation put in place and Behan was caught red-handed at Laveybeg, Charlestown, on September 13, 2023.

He was arrested and later released on bail but re-offended in October.

He made a full admission to gardaí and told officers he was under orders to carry out a mission to bring down masts that were emitting rays.

Behan believed the military, the Vatican, foreign powers, and a host of other organisations were all involved.

He believed the ‘rays’ would harm him and his family and thought he could feel his skin "bubbling." He also heard voices in his head.

The court heard Behan, who holds a degree in aeronautical engineering, began suffering from paranoid delusions in 2016/2017.

He came under the care of the Adult Mental Health Unit in Castlebar and medication brought his condition under control.

Consultant psychiatrist Kieran Hennigan said Behan was a “high functioning” schizophrenic who had been able to maintain a job and function well in society. However, during Covid-19 he became more isolated and lost contact with the psychiatric services.

Dr. Hennigan told the court that the service was not concerned about Behan in comparison to more high-priority patients.

The court was also told that work commitments saw Behan replace fortnightly appointments for the injection of his medication in favour of taking the drugs he requires orally.

Dr. Hennigan said the nature of his illness meant Behan would not have been able to stop himself from carrying out the crimes.

“He was suffering at the time. The compulsion to act and try and stop it would have been overwhelming,” he stated.

The defendant came back under the care of the psychiatric services in March 2024 and again responded well to medication and was discharged in April. He has no previous convictions.

Judge Eoin Garavan described Behan as a "decent, high-functioning and gentle individual" who had "never done anything wrong in his life" before these offences.

He remarked that Behan was “another victim of Covid and lockdown."

The judge noted a “palpable” increase in offending linked to the pandemic.

Judge Garavan said Behan “essentially became overlooked” by the mental health services and things “started to go wrong” when his injection regime was replaced by oral medication.

Following the jury’s verdict, Judge Garavan wished Behan well.

“Clearly everyone is glad a decent man like this is now quite stable,” he commented.

* Funded under the Courts Reporting Scheme.