A crack cocaine addicted thief, whose own defending counsel described her as having “plagued” Dublin City has been sentenced to years in jail for six and a half years.
Gript previously reported the case of Marese Craig, who appeared before the Circuit Criminal Court last week charged with over 20 counts of theft of items totalling well over €30,000, with the charges spread over 10 bill numbers.
Case Background
Craig (28) of Bridgefoot Street, Dublin 8 pleaded guilty to over 20 counts of theft and related charges spread over 10 bill numbers before the Circuit Criminal Court.
One of Craig’s victims was a mother who was visiting her sick baby who was in the ICU at the Coombe hospital at the time.
Another of her victims, a 75-year-old US tourist who has terminal cancer, was robbed of €27,000 worth of medication from outside the Moxy Hotel.
Prosecuting counsel, Aoife O’Leary BL, told the court that Craig had targeted both staff and customers in a series of cafes, bars, and hotels across the city, in two cases stealing tip jars with the total amount of what she stole reaching thousands of euros.
The majority of the goods and cash were not recovered, the court heard.
Detective Garda Joseph Heafy of Pearse Street station told the court that he has “known” Craig for 15 years, agreeing with defending counsel Keith Spenser that her “modus operandi” was to steal to feed her drug addiction.
Bewleys’ Cafe Grafton Street
In December 2022 Craig went through staff lockers in Bewleys’ cafe on Grafton Street taking a number of bank cards, varying amounts of cash, an iPad as well as perfume to the value of €130 and €300.
After taking the cards she used the card of one victim to make purchases in a nearby shop.
After she was identified, Gardaí got a Section 24 warrant and interviewed her while she was in custody on other matters in the Dochas centre.
Craig has 191 previous convictions including 18 for burglary, 9 for robbery, 102 for Section 4 theft, 12 for possession of articles , 12 for breaches of the Public Order Act, 9 of the convictions are from Circuit Court level.
Craig “briefly” had a job as a hairdresser but fell back into offending after her brother took his own life.
Musashi Japanese Style Restaurant
On the 4th of March last year the accused entered Musashi claiming to be pregnant and asking to use the toilet. She noticed the manager, Alice Du, counting cash in an office, before leaving the restaurant.
Some time later she returned with her father, who was present in court to support her, who then went up behind Ms. Du and took an envelope containing €3,200 cash before running out of the building.
The Coombe Maternity Hospital ICU
A mother who was visiting her sick infant son, who was an inpatient at the Coombe Hospital’s intensive care unit, was robbed of her purse, vouchers, holy medals, €50 euro, and various money and identification cards.
The woman became aware that her belongings had been stolen after she began to receive spending notifications on her phone while on Facetime with her daughter and mother, showing them the sick infant from the ICU.
Elderly American Tourist targeted
A 75-year old American tourist, who had terminal cancer and had come to Ireland on a golfing trip as he “hasn’t much time left,” was robbed of a bag containing €27,000 of medication.
The man noticed his bag was missing when a taxi driver was helping him unload the car in front of the Moxy Hotel.
The man, whose 79-year-old wife is also terminally ill, lost medications worth over €12,000 after they were rendered unusable. His son ultimately travelled to Ireland to bring more of the essential drugs for his father’s care.
The Leonard Hotel
Garda Niamh Goldrick responded to an allegation of theft on the 2nd of June 2024 by a chef in the kitchens of the Leonard Hotel who said that his wallet had been stolen.
On that day two women were observed “acting suspiciously” on the premises before they were told to leave and were escorted from the back area of the hotel.
Some time later the chef noticed that belongings were “all over the floor”.
Other bars, restaurants, and cafes targeted were 4th Corner, Wigwam, Spar Dolphins Barn, Stay City, Pinnochio’s, Harton’s Bar, Leonard’s Corner, The Merlin Hotel, Brambles Cafe, the Leonardo Hotel, Black Sheep, and Bull and Castle.
Craig’s defending counsel, Mr. Spencer said his client’s mother was a recovering alcoholic, and that she had been exposed to substance abuse from an early age and that she had “plagued the city”.
Since she has never been enrolled in a treatment program, he asked Judge Orla Crowe to structure a sentence with an emphasis on rehabilitation.
The court heard that, in particular, an addiction to crack has had a “devastating” effect on the accused who claimed not to remember significant portions of her misbehaviour.
Today, Judge Crowe sentenced her to seven and a half years in jail of consecutive sentences for the spate of offending, suspending the final 12 months on conditions including cooperation with the Probation Services for 18 months post release.