A MAN pleaded not guilty in court to his alleged role in the armed robbery of a packet of birdseed and hand sanitizer from a security van driver.
Wayne Williams (41), of Griffith Avenue, Ballinacurra Weston, Limerick, went on trial at the Limerick Circuit Criminal Court this Tuesday (March 4) accused of robbing Frank Butler, who was then working as a van driver for security firm Brinks-Mat.
Mr Butler gave evidence he could not return to work for the security firm following the alleged robbery on January 15, 2021, outside a Mr Price shop premises in Annacotty, County Limerick.
Mr Butler said he began his shift at the Brinks-Mat security depot at Galvone, Limerick, at 7am on the morning in question.
- External Walls: Up to €8,000 Grant
- Attic: Up to €1,500 Grant
- Cavity Walls: Up to €1,700 Grant
- Internal Dry Lining: Up to €4,500 Grant
He said he drove the van to Colbert Rail Station, Limerick Junction Station, and Thurles Railway Station, County Tipperary, collecting cash from ticket machines.
He said the ticket machines contained only a small amount money as, at the time, it was “at the height” of the Covid-19 pandemic and “travel restrictions” were in place which reduced the number of people using public transport.
Mr Butler said that, as he was driving the security van back to the Limerick base, he made a detour at the Mr Price shop, located at Annacotty, to purchase birdseed, hand sanitizer, and a water condenser.
Mr Butler said he parked the van outside the shop entrance and removed his high-visibility vest before walking inside the shop and purchasing the three items.
He said he was walking back to the security van when he was knocked down by a dark coloured BMW car.
“As I walked to my vehicle, I was struck by a car and sent onto the bonnet of the car and onto the ground, about eight feet away from where I was struck,” Mr Butler told the court.
Mr Butler claimed a masked man alighted from the front passenger seat of the BMW and approached him carrying a “pick axe handle”.
“He was swinging the pick axe handle, then I realised I was being attacked, and that (the collision) was not an accident.
“I shouted ‘what do you want?’ and he replied ‘give me the money’, and I said I didn’t have any money.
“He started hitting me with the pick axe handle, I was struck multiple times on my hands, my arms, my shoulders, my hip.
“I kept shouting I don’t have any money, but I was wasting my time, I realised this was a full-on street fight, so I waited for him to swing (the handle) again, and as he swung it, I went to grab the handle and him, and I threw him to the ground.”
Mr Butler claimed that, as he grabbed the pick axe handle from the masked man, another masked man that was sitting in the BMW’s driver’s seat pointed a handgun at him and shouted: “Get off him or I will shoot you.”
He said he dropped the pick axe handle and stepped away from the other masked man, who, he said, got to his feet, grabbed the plastic bag containing the birdseed and other items and fled with the other man in the BMW.
Mr Butler said he “took control of the scene”, asking bystanders to remain at the scene and help get the registration plate of the BMW for Gardaí.
He said he telephoned Gardaí as well as the “Brinks panic line” and made a statement before going to hospital for treatment for his injuries.
Under cross examination by Lorcan Connolly, senior counsel for Mr Williams, Mr Butler agreed he had not seen the faces of the two men in the BMW.
Mr Butler also agreed that the two men wore dark clothing, hats, and face coverings, and they were possibly aged between their late teens and early 20s.
The trial continues.