A serving Irish soldier, who beat a woman unconscious in a random attack, has walked free from court after getting a fully suspended sentence.
Cathal Crotty (22) of Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha in Co Clare, boasted about the incident afterwards on social media.
Mr Crotty had initially tried to blame the victim - 24-year-old Natasha O'Brien - by wrongly telling arresting Gardaí that she had instigated the attack.
It happened on O'Connell Street in Limerick on May 29th, 2022.
The court heard it appeared he had lashed out at Ms O'Brien after she and a friend of hers had "politely" asked him to stop shouting a slur.
However after Gardaí showed the accused CCTV footage of him attacking Ms O'Brien without provocation he admitted his guilt, the court heard on Wednesday.
Hours after the attack, Mr Crotty messaged friends on Snapchat with the words, "Two to put her down, two to put her out."
Ms O'Brien sustained a broken nose, bruising, nightmares and panic attacks afterwards.
Judge Tom O'Donnell said the Mr Crotty's actions were "utterly appalling", but said he had "no doubt" if he imposed an immediate jail sentence on Crotty his Army "career is over".
The Judge imposed a three-year sentence which he suspended in its entirety and ordered Mr Crotty to pay €3,000 compensation to Ms O'Brien.
Speaking afterwards Ms O'Brien criticised the sentence, saying she felt "there was no true regard given for the seriousness of his violent crimes, nor the lifelong trauma I am now forced to suffer".
