Man fined for criminal damage after court finds he spray-painted over freshly-laid parking lines
A disagreement over parking spaces led to a man using black spray paint to cover over freshly-laid lines and numbers in what a Judge ruled was a case of criminal damage.
Simon Toussifar, of 3 Blind Gate, Rose Abbey in Kinsale, denied two charges of criminal damage near his property on October 31 and November 1 last year.
He had been accused by Antoinette Fitzgerald, who manages number 2 Blind Gate on behalf of her partner, Declan Browne, of using the spray paint to deface the freshly-laid white paint lines marking and numbering the car parking spaces. Bandon District Court heard there are three properties in the area, and each has been allocated two spaces.
Garda John Corcoran of Kinsale Garda station said on November 1 last year he received a call alleging criminal damage and that he spoke to Antoinette Fitzgerald. She had paid a painter €50 to paint the lines for number 2 and, at the request of the residents, those for number 1. Garda Corcoran said the painted white lines had been painted over in black.
He said he then received a later phone call from Ms Fitzgerald, this time at 3pm, saying she had seen Mr Toussifar painting over the lines. Garda Corcoran said he then spoke with Mr Toussifar, who denied the allegation but refused to make a statement.
The Garda told Judge James McNulty: "When I spoke to Simon Toussifar I got a smell of paint from him."
Ms Fitzgerald said 2 Blind Gate had been bought by Cork County Council prior to Mr Toussifar moving in, and that he had parked in the wrong spaces "on numerous occasions".
Helen O'Donovan, an officer in the housing section of Cork County Council, said the parking issue had not been clarified for Mr Toussifar when he first moved in but was later following a query from him on November 7, 2017.
Mr Toussifar, a father-of-two, denied defacing the parking lines. He also said any smell of paint was possibly due to having dropped his jacket on the ground when he and his family had returned from Cork shopping.
Judge McNulty said the court found the evidence of Garda Corcoran and Ms Fitzgerald to be "coherent, convincing and truthful", whereas the evidence from Mr Toussifar was "less than truthful".
He convicted Mr Toussifar, who had no previous convictions and who told the court he is his partner's carer, on one of the charges and fined him €500, with six months to pay, taking the other charge into consideration.
