Dublin Circuit Criminal Court's heard a shop worker was told he was going to die during an armed robbery in Clondalkin.
The victim who suffers from Parkinson’s disease froze because of the stress of the robbery and couldn’t speak.
In September 2016 a shop worker was opening the Centra in the Neilstown Shopping Centre when he saw two men approaching him.
One had what looked like a shot gun and the other had a ten inch knife. The shot gun later turned out to be two copper pipes tapped together.
The raiders pushed the worker inside the shop and told him to open the ‘’f***ing till’’ .
The victim who suffers from Parkinson's Disease started having a tremor. He froze and could barely talk.
One of the raiders pointed the imitation firearm at him and threatened to shoot him in the legs and the groin.
One of the men also said to the worker '‘You’re going to die before we leave.’'
The men eventually left with over €7,000 worth of alcohol, cigarettes and lottery tickets.
Paul Beirnes of St Ronan’s Way in Clondalkin – who was a long standing customer of the shop - was stopped by a garda a short time later.
He was sweating profusely and was arrested.
The 45 year old has pleaded guilty to robbery and false imprisonment and will be sentenced in May.
The court heard Beirnes was addicted to drugs from the age of 17. He got himself off drugs and set up a horse trading business. He sold off 51 horses to finance his addiction.
