By 
AN Omagh man told police a ‘tall black man with one arm and an afro” stole a van he was in – but the court dismissed the claim as ‘absolutely absurd.’
Alastar Rickey, 34, of Lisap Cottages, Omagh, was sentenced at Omagh Magistrates Court for multiple motoring offences including aggravated vehicle taking, causing damage, driving without insurance, no learner plates, and driving unaccompanied as a learner.
The court heard that on March 13, at 7.11pm, two men were fitting a towbar converter to their van when someone got inside and drove off.
Less than 30 minutes later, police received reports of a crashed van near Fivemiletown.
Rickey was found trapped inside the vehicle and had to be freed by the fire service.
During a police interview, Rickey claimed he was not driving and that a ‘six-foot-five black man with one arm and an afro’ had stolen the van and crashed it with him inside.
Firefighters used thermal imaging to search for the alleged driver but found no-one else at the scene.
Defence solicitor Michael Fahy told the court Rickey’s behaviour might be linked to not taking medication and going without food or sleep for a week.
Appearing by videolink, Rickey is currently serving a six-month prison term (on a separate matter undisclosed to the court) and is being treated in Maghaberry’s hospital wing.
District Judge Ted Magill called the vehicle taking ‘opportunistic’ and rejected Rickey’s explanation as ‘absolutely absurd’.
He disqualified Rickey from driving for two years and added a further three months imprisonment to the current sentence.