The stepfather of missing teen Amy Fitzpatrick has asked a court to clarify if he is to face a more serious assault charge or not.
Dave Mahon (51) from Breffni Crescent in Carrick-on-Shannon, is accused of assault causing harm to pensioner Jim Fahy (70) in August 2021.
Mr Mahon appeared before a sitting of Carrick on Shannon Circuit Court on Thursday - accompanied by his wife Audrey - the mother of missing Amy (15) who vanished from the Mijas Costa area of Spain in 2008.
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On Thursday, Mr Mahon’s legal counsel told the judge that he was seeking to have it clarified whether his client was facing a Section 4 or Section 3 assault charge.
According to the charge sheet, Mr Mahon is accused of Section 3 assault - an offence which carries a maximum term of five years imprisonment.
A Section 4 charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The court heard outstanding issues - including over disclosure in the case, would be dealt with next term.
The case was therefore put back to November of this year - over two years on from when the alleged incident occurred.
In February, the court heard that a request was made on behalf of Dave Mahon for disclosure in the case but it has not been accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The court heard that this issue will have to be "dealt with at some stage."
When the case was heard in May 2022 the court heard that Mahon was “anxious and ready to proceed.”
Mr Mahon is the stepfather of Amy Fitzpatrick, a 15 year old Irish teen who vanished from the Mijas Costa area of Spain on New Year's Day 2008.
No trace of Amy has ever been found - but recently Amy's family have claimed that they received information that the missing teen was seen in the company of a man with an Irish accent at a bar in the area before she went missing.
Amy was last seen walking from her friend Ashley Rose’s house at around 10pm on New Year's Day, 2008, walking in the direction of her home, where she lived with her mother Audrey and stepfather Dave Mahon.
Her mobile phone was subsequently discovered in her bedroom by her mother Audrey, who has repeatedly stated that she does not believe Amy went out with her phone before she vanished.
Despite claims that the case has been shelved, it is understood that officers continue to investigate Amy's disappearance.
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