A woman from Donegal has been sentenced for 20 months in prison for helping her boyfriend and his brother for the assault and robbery of a taxi driver in Dublin. Nikkita Brogan (24) was arrested for helping her boyfriend Peter Collins (26) and brother Jason Collins (18) who assaulted a 60-year-old taxi driver during a robbery attempt on 6th May 2019.
Peter and Jason had been sentenced to four and a half years and three and a half years imprisonment respectively for the same case in December 2019. Jason’s sentence was suspended by 12 months later.
The convicts and another woman entered the taxi on the night of 6th May 2019 from Dublin city centre to Crumlin. Reaching there, Peter Collins wrapped a phone charger cable around the neck of the 60-year-old taxi man while his younger brother Jason Collins punched the man in the face and searched his pockets.
It was Nikkita who released the taxi driver’s seatbelt, so the men could drag the taxi driver from his vehicle and assisted in reattaching the knob of the gearstick as the men attempted to start the taxi. The driver was pushed down to the road but the assailants could not start the car. Then they escaped by leaving the car but were arrested from a nearby location.
Sentencing Brogan on Tuesday, Judge Melanie Greally noted that Brogan had played a role in the offence by unbuckling the taxi driver’s seatbelt. The dash cam of the car had recorded the incident and it was played before the judge in the court.
Nikkita had consistently expressed her remorse and shame for her actions and has attempted to rehabilitate in custody. She has expressed a wish to become a better mother to her young son. She repeatedly said during interview that what had happened was a disgrace, shouldn’t have happened, and she was sorry. She said she hoped that the taxi driver would be okay.
Judge Melanie Greally sentenced Nikkita for a 32-month sentence and suspended the final 12 months on a number of conditions.