Man who helped shot publican is convicted of running brothel
Oliver McDonald leaves Tullamore court yesterday
A man who gave first aid to bar-owner Charlie Chawke after he was shot in a pub carpark by armed robbers has been jailed for running a prostitution racket from a well-known hotel.
Oliver McDonald (49), with an address at Lower Drumcondra Road, Dublin 9, was convicted yesterday of running a brothel in Tullamore, Co Offaly, on four occasions between January 27 and February 4 this year.
Mr McDonald, who was present when Mr Chawke was shot in Dublin in October 2003, said he turned to prostitution after his life fell apart though stress following the Chawke shooting.
Gda Michael Lowery told Tullamore District Court that gardai had received information that a brothel was being run at a premises in O'Moore Street, Tullamore.
They discovered Mr McDonald had on several occasions booked room 212 in the Tullamore Court Hotel in his own name for the purposes of organising prostitution.
Gardai mounted a stakeout of the room on February 3, 2007 and Mr McDonald was seen arriving with a woman at 1.30pm. Between that time and midnight, six men were seen to enter the room, each staying for half an hour to an hour.
Three gardai entered the room at 12.05am where they found a woman lying naked on the bed and a man standing naked beside her.
There were several candles in the room and a total of €520 was recovered. The woman, Susanna, who is a native of the Czech Republic, was cautioned and admitted to being a prostitute and said the sum of money was her earnings.
In his statement to gardai Mr McDonald said he had been given Susanna's name by a woman he had met in Prague.
The woman said that Susanna was living in Ashbourne, Co Meath, and was looking for work as she had been let go from her job in a bar.
Mr McDonald contacted Susanna, who agreed to work for him. All of their clients were local men.
Giving evidence, Susanna said that she had never worked as a prostitute before and was apprehensive but needed the money. She also said she made three housecalls in the Tullamore area.
Geraldine Fitzpatrick, for Mr McDonald said her client had lost his business as a result of post-traumatic stress suffered when he was on the scene as Charlie Chawke was shot at the Goat Pub in Goatstown on the October 6, 2003.
A psychiatric report detailed that since that event he had suffered nightmares and was "afraid to put his head on his pillow at night".
Judge John F Neilan sentenced McDonald to four months imprisonment on one count of living off the proceeds of prostitution.
He was also given four months for each of four counts of organising prostitution with these sentences to run concurrently.
- Dara deFaoite
