Co Armagh man claimed to have drunk five bottles of Buckfast before he was arrested for disorderly behaviour in Lurgan, Craigavon court hears
A Co Armagh claimed to have drunk five bottles of Buckfast before he was arrested for disorderly behaviour.
The 47-year-old was said to have been “shouting and screaming” outside Mount Zion House, Lurgan, before police arrived.
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Gary McKenna, from Ardowen, Craigavon, appeared before Craigavon Magistrates Court on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to disorderly behaviour.
Police received a call from a youth leader at Mount Zion House on May 28 at 8.50pm that a man was “shouting and banging” on the door of the building.
“They thought he was under the influence of drugs,” said the Prosecutor.
Police found McKenna close to Mount Zion and he appeared to be “heavily under the influence of alcohol”.
"Staff told police he had been making threats to members of the youth club, shouting and swearing and knocking on doors and windows of the building,” a Prosecutor said.
He refused to leave the area and “was threatening towards police using highly abusive language, shouting and screaming in the public street”.
"He told police he had drunk five bottles of Buckfast that day,” revealed the Prosecutor.
McKenna’s lawyer said his client is a “chronic alcoholic” with a record spanning 25 years.
"His record is inextricably woven with issues of addiction. He oscillates between periods of sobriety and periods of addiction,” he said.
"He is more of a nuisance to society than any significant threat. He doesn’t respond well to interactions with police,” he said.
“If he had heeded police advice to go home, he wouldn’t be here.”
District Judge Michael Ranaghan said: “Your record is a poor one.”
He sentenced McKenna to three months in jail suspended for 12 months.