Man (42) ‘ripped’ gold necklace off woman at her front gate in Donnybrook, court hears

A 42-year-old man “ripped” a bereaved mother’s gold medal dedicated to her deceased son from her neck when he targeted vulnerable Dublin 4 women, a court has heard.

Romanian construction worker Grigore Malanca, who moved to Ireland in January and lives at Walkinstown Crescent, Dublin 12, appeared at Dún Laoghaire District Court on Monday and was held pending a €500 bail lodgement.

The father of one is accused of robbery of a 75-year-old woman on July 28th in Donnybrook of her €800 gold necklace which had a heart with the letter M pendant.

He was also charged with attempted robbery of a 62-year-old woman on September 12th in Sandymount.

Objecting to bail, Garda Aisling Shannon said the first incident involved the elderly woman at her front gate.

The court heard the accused tried to approach the woman after performing a U-turn in his car and ripped her necklace from her.