10:54 am, November 6, 2026
A man who stole a £15,000 Renault Arkana from a Belfast car dealership has narrowly avoided jail.
Patrick McGurk admitted taking the SUV without permission from Charles Hurst’s used car site on Boucher Road.
The offence took place last November and the 38-year-old has now appeared at Belfast Crown Court where he pleaded guilty to the theft.
The courtheard that McGurk entered the dealership’s car park at around 1.30pm on November 5, where the Arkana had been left with its keys inside while a delivery driver moved other vehicles around the site.
CCTV footage showed the defendant getting into the car and driving away, before jumping a red light a short distance away.
He was subsequently identified by police from the footage and arrested but the Irish News reports that the vehicle is still yet to be recovered.
In court, Prosecuting barrister Jonathon Connolly said that the theft appeared to be ‘more opportunistic than planned’.
He added: ‘He walked through the barrier in broad daylight, took the car and drove straight out.’
McGurk’s defence barrister, Luke Curran, agreed his client had not left home intending to steal a vehicle and insisted he made no financial gain from the offence.
He added that McGurk has turned his life around since stealing the car from the dealership, having entered a long-term relationship, become a father and stopped taking drugs.
Prior to this incident, he had an extensive criminal record, with 82 previous offences, including 12 thefts, three burglaries and three robberies.
Sentencing him, Judge Philip Gilpin said the theft had caused a significant financial loss to Charles Hurst.
‘This is not in any way a victimless crime and the company has suffered a loss by what you have done,’ he told McGurk.
After hearing all the evidence, the judge handed McGurk a 14-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.