Lurgan brothers Adrian and Alister Douglas enter guilty pleas to intimidating woman from her home
Two Co Armagh brothers have entered guilty pleas to intimidating a woman from her home.
Standing side by side in the dock at Craigavon Crown Court, 34-year-old Adrian Douglas admitted intimidation while his older brother Alister Douglas, aged 37, admitted aiding and abetting his brother in the intimidation on 30 April last year.
The Lurgan brothers also admitted a charge of attempting to cause criminal damage to a front door belonging to the woman on the same date.
Following the pair's admissions, prosecuting counsel Nicola Auret asked for a further charge of trying to damager the ring doorbell to be left on the books, an application which was granted by Judge Patrick Lynch KC.
In relation to the intimidation charge the Lurgan brothers, from Carrick Drive and Charles Baron Gardens respectively, admitted that they “unlawfully caused by force, threats or menaces, or in some other way another person ... to leave a place where she was for the time being resident or in occupation.”
It is the footage recorded from the ring doorbell that has landed the two brothers in court after they were recorded shouting sectarian abuse as well as hammering and kicking the door.
On spotting the doorbell camera, one of them tried to prise it off the door frame and with the video posted online, the footage has been viewed thousands of times and has evoked public revulsion and condemnation from all quarters.
None of the facts were opened on Tuesday but defence barristers Conor Coulter and Patrick Taggart agreed that sentencing should be adjourned until the Probation Board have complied pre-sentence reports.
Freeing the brothers on continuing bail, Judge Lynch said he would deal with the case on 8 March, advising the defendant to cooperate when PBNI contact them.
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