Tattoo artist pulled windscreen wiper off car during violent Dublin city street brawl

Samara Baschiera pleaded guilty to affray and criminal damage.

Andrew Phelan

February 06 2023 02:30 AM

A TATTOO artist got into a violent street brawl with a motorist after pulling a windscreen wiper off his car during a row on a Dublin city centre street.

Samara Baschiera (33) and the man slapped each other across the face and body as the fight escalated “out of control” after she damaged his vehicle, a court heard.

Baschiera, of Ardmore Park, Tallaght, pleaded guilty to affray and criminal damage.

Adjourning the case, Judge Bryan Smyth said he would apply the Probation Act, leaving her without convictions if she donated €1,000 to charity.

Dublin District Court heard the incident happened at Capel Street on May 6, 2021.

Garda Sergeant Tony Flanagan said the accused was in an argument with a man and pulled a windscreen wiper off his vehicle.

The altercation “developed”, he said and each party alleged that they had been assaulted by the other.

The other person had also pleaded guilty and had already been dealt with by the courts, Sgt Flanagan said.

The court heard the pair had assaulted each other by slapping each other “on the face and body.”

The row resulted from a “traffic incident” between a pedestrian – the accused – and the driver of the car.

Baschiera’s damage to the car escalated the situation.Sgt Flanagan said he was not aware of the cost of the damage but the other party did not wish to pursue this.

Baschiera only had one previous conviction, for uninsured driving.

She “deeply regrets her actions on the day,” her lawyer said.

“It would have been her case that it was an unfortunate situation that got out of control, and there was aggression on both sides,” she said.

The accused accepted her actions were “totally wrong.”

She was from Brazil but had been living and working in Ireland for “quite a long time,” her lawyer said.

“This is utterly out of character,” the lawyer added.