A MAN who assaulted a Rosscarbery hotel receptionist by ‘squaring’ up to her after she tried to wake him up in the hotel foyer has been directed by a judge to bring €2,000 to court on the next occasion, or else face four months in prison.
The incident occurred at the Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery on December 11th last.
Maxim Krylov (22) of Cluain Dara, Clonmacken in Co Limerick recently pleaded guilty at Clonakilty District Court to assault, being drunk in a public place and using or engaging in threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour.
Sgt Tom Mulcahy told Judge Andrew Cody that the defendant was asleep in the lobby of the hotel and that his friend came down to try and wake him up at around 7am but he wasn’t getting up.
‘The injured party, who was working in the hotel reception, asked him to get up. He then squared up to her and struck her in the front shoulder and she fell back,’ said Sgt Mulcahy.
‘His roommate attempted to restrain him and a physical argument broke out and gardaí were eventually called. They found him to be in a drunken state and he was taken to Clonakilty Garda Station,’ the garda added.
The court heard that the injured party would like to make a victim impact statement on the next occasion. Defence solicitor Conrad Murphy said his client deeply regrets and apologises for what happened in the hotel.
‘He was staying there with a friend and received some bad news the night before that he wouldn’t have access to his child. He took Xanax and drank on top of that. He was passed out on the couch in the foyer,’ said Mr Murphy.
‘The receptionist approached him and his reaction was totally out of order.’
Mr Murphy said his client ironically used to work as a hotel bar supervisor but Judge Cody said it’s easy for the defendant to say that he is sorry after he ‘clocked’ a poor receptionist who was only doing her job and queried the defendant’s expression of remorse.
The court heard that he has no previous convictions, while Mr Murphy said it would take his client two to four weeks to come up with €1,000 in compensation for the injured party.
Judge Cody sentenced him to four months in prison but suspended it for two years in his own bond and also directed him to pay €2,000 in compensation to the injured party.
He took into consideration the two public order charges.
‘If the money is not paid on the next occasion then he will receive a four-month prison sentence,’ said Judge Cody.
He remanded him on continuing bail to appear in court again on April 1st next.
