{"id":461781,"date":"2026-05-22T13:29:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T13:29:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/461781\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T13:29:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T13:29:10","slug":"man-jailed-for-savage-attack-on-teenage-woman-in-letterkenny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/461781\/","title":{"rendered":"Man jailed for savage attack on teenage woman in Letterkenny"},"content":{"rendered":"

A quantity surveyor has been jailed after launching a savage and unprovoked attack on a teenage woman in Donegal<\/p>\n

Seamus Cooley repeatedly punched Shanan Reid McDaid in the face in a random assault on the 18-year-old in October 2017.<\/p>\n

Cooley, who has had addresses at The Grange, Letterkenny and St Jude\u2019s Court, Lifford, was sentenced to four years in prison by Judge John Aylmer at Letterkenny Circuit Court.<\/p>\n

The 51-year-old Cooley has 13 convictions, including 10 for public order matters, from the District Court and also one conviction for an aggravated assault from Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n

The court heard that he walked off into the night after leaving his victim covered in blood at Castle Street, Letterkenny in the early hours of October 15, 2017.<\/p>\n

The case was outlined to Ms Fiona Crawford BL, barrister for the State, by investigating Garda Neil Kemmy.<\/p>\n

Ms Reid McDaid had been out socialising with some friends and was walking up the Market Square to meet with friends. A man, now known to be Cooley was close by and he shouted some derogatory remarks to Ms Reid McDaid.<\/p>\n

The victim reported that she noticed the man had stopped walking, but had continued to verbally taunt her.<\/p>\n

When she got within arm\u2019s length of Cooley, he was facing her head-on and he struck her to the face with a closed fist.<\/p>\n

Cooley rained a series of punches to Ms Reid McDaid\u2019s face. The young woman estimated that she was struck eight-to-10 times by Cooley.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just left,\u201d she later told Gardai.<\/p>\n

Ms Reid McDaid was able to give a detailed description of her attacker to Gardai. A friend of Ms Reid McDaid told how the woman told her pals \u201cI have been hit\u201d. The man said that Ms Reid McDaid\u2019s face \u201cdidn\u2019t look real\u201d.<\/p>\n

Ms Reid McDaid was taken to hospital, where injuries were found including a suspected broken nose, two chipped teeth, a cut to the side of the head, a sore jaw as well as swelling and bruising to her face.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Shanan Reid McDaid after the incident in 2017<\/p>\n

A report from Mr Gerry Lane, a consultant in Letterkenny University Hospital, noted that the injuries were \u201centirely consistent with an assault\u201d.<\/p>\n

When Garda Kemmy saw the victim, her face and clothes were covered in blood, while he also noted chips to teeth and a cut to the side of her head.<\/p>\n

CCTV was harvested and Cooley was identified by members of An Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na.<\/p>\n

A search warrant was obtained and executed at Cooley\u2019s home, where a jacket was found and forensically analysed by Forensic Science Ireland. Blood staining with a profile matching the victim was located.<\/p>\n

When he was interviewed by Gardai, Cooley was said to have been \u201cextremely derogatory\u201d towards Ms Reid McDaid and also to other women. He claimed to Gardai that she was a liar and outlined that forensics was \u201call nonsense\u201d. He said the allegation against him was \u201cbullshit\u201d and claimed that the Gardai were planting evidence.
Cooley denied the attack and pointed the finger at another man when he was shown CCTV.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am innocent and done nothing wrong,\u201d he told Gardai, while he said he was prejudiced and discriminated against.<\/p>\n

In a victim impact statement, which was read out by Ms Crawford, Ms Reid McDaid said that a night out in her home town with friends turned into a \u201clife-altering event that had a lasting impact\u201d.<\/p>\n

She told how she required dental intervention and was in pain for months afterwards.<\/p>\n

Ms Reid McDaid said she suffered from physical injuries and was also at a significant financial loss, but said the most devastating impact was the emotional trauma.<\/p>\n

She told the court that she has had symptoms of PTSD and panic attacks, triggered by minor incidents.<\/p>\n

\n You may also be interested in\n <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Scorchio:<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"New<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMy body is stuck in a constant state of fight or flight,\u201d she said, adding that she has avoided social settings and felt afraid in her own community.<\/p>\n

The incident occurred just as she was starting university. She said that NUIG were \u201cextremely supportive\u201d, but she \u201calways felt a few steps behind.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Seamus Cooley’s victim Shannen Reid McDaid at the hearing at Letterkenny Circuit Court. (North West Newspix)<\/p>\n

What made her ordeal even harder was that it took almost eight years for Cooley to take accountability – something that made her feel as if justice was being denied.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to carry the weight of it for so long,\u201d she said. It made me angry, resentful and deeply frustrated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ms Reid McDiad recalled how Cooley engaged with one of her social media platforms after she moved to Australia. This, she said, \u201cdeeply unsettled me and reopened old wounds.\u201d<\/p>\n

At this point, she feared that she \u201cmight not ever be truly free from his presence or reach\u201d and noted the toll the matter took on her family.<\/p>\n

Mr James McGowan SC, with Mr Senan Crawford BL, instructed by solicitor Conor Moylan of Madden & Finucane, represented Cooley.<\/p>\n

Mr McGowan said his client was bullied and troubled at home as a child. He said his childhood was \u201ctraumatic\u201d and outlined difficulties with his parents.<\/p>\n

He said that Cooley reported that the atmosphere was \u201cbad much of the time\u201d and said Cooley, a qualified quantity surveyor, suffered from depression and had suicidal ideations.<\/p>\n

Mr McGowan told the court that Cooley\u2019s father died in 2017 and his client was binge drinking thereafter, suffering from a lot of anger and depression.<\/p>\n

The incident for which he was before the court happened four months after the death of his father.<\/p>\n

Mr McGowan added that Cooley has since stopped drinking and his anger has \u201ccome down\u201d since going sober. He said that Cooley reported that he \u201cfinally copped on\u201d.<\/p>\n

The court heard that Cooley had been subjected to some \u201cdistressing incidents\u201d. Mr McGowan said there had been attacks on his home and car, while he was targeted by \u201cintimidation and abuse\u201d on social media.<\/p>\n

Mr McGowan said that Cooley is finding prison \u201cdifficult\u201d.<\/p>\n

Cooley offered \u20ac2,500 to the victim, but she did not wish to accept it, the court was informed.<\/p>\n

In sentencing Cooley, Judge Aylmer said the maximum penalty for such an offence at the time of its commission was five years in prison.<\/p>\n

Judge Aylmer said this was a \u201crandom attack in the early hours of the morning on a lone, young female on her way home from a night out\u201d.<\/p>\n

Judge Aylmer said that the victim sustained a \u201cvery violent physical attack\u201d and said she was \u201cextremely fortunate\u201d not to have suffered more serious physical injuries.<\/p>\n

He noted the \u201cappalling psychological impact\u201d suffered by Ms Reid McDaid who he said \u201cwill be left suffering that impact for a very significant time to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

The appropriate headline sentence, Judge Aylmer said, was one of four and a half years in prison<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is very much on the upper end of the scale,\u201d the judge said.<\/p>\n

An albeit late guilty plea had to be given credit, while Judge Aylmer noted that Cooley has a \u201cvery complex psychological history\u201d. The mitigating factors were few, Judge Aylmer said, but he added that the accused had come to a realisation in 2025 and said it appeared as if he is now engaged in \u201cbetter self-regulation\u201d. The judge told Cooley: \u201cIt better continue\u201d.<\/p>\n

Judge Aylmer took account of the offer of compensation, but said: \u201cI would consider it to be far short of a true concrete demonstration of remorse from a quantity surveyor whose business has continued\u201d.<\/p>\n

Judge Aylmer reduced the sentence to one of four years in prison with credit to be given for all time spent in custody.<\/p>\n

Last June, Cooley was remanded in custody after being found to have breached conditions of his bail when he appeared at Cavan Circuit Court.<\/p>\n

In remanding Cooley in custody, Judge Aylmer said that Cooley \u201cdisplayed arrogance\u201d and showed a \u201cflagrant disregard\u201d for bail conditions previously set by the court.<\/p>\n

Under the terms of his bail, Cooley was due to sign on three times a week at Buncrana Garda Station, but he had only an 82 per cent adherence. Cooley told the Gardai that he was happy with the amount of times he was signing on and that he was happy to sign on when it suited him. He told Gardai that he started working throughout the country and it \u201cdidn\u2019t suit him some days\u201d to sign on.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A quantity surveyor has been jailed after launching a savage and unprovoked attack on a teenage woman in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":461782,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,43],"class_list":["post-461781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=461781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461781\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/461782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=461781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=461781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=461781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}