Archdeacon David Pierpoint described the fire in the church’s crypt as ‘an act of desecration and sacrilege’ in a victim impact statement during the sentencing hearing of Cristian Topiter (39), who had pleaded guilty to arson.
Topiter appeared via video link at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on Thursday.
The court heard that St Michan’s Church’s crypt holds mummified remains, including ‘the Crusader’, which dates back 800 years.
These remains were described to the court by prosecuting counsel Diana Stuart BL as ‘irreplaceable’ and ‘priceless’.
Topiter came forward on signed guilty pleas from the District Court to a charge of arson on June 11 last.
The court heard that Topiter of Grand Canal House, Lower Rathmines Road, Dublin 6, has a previous conviction for arson from Northern Ireland, in which €300,000 worth of damage was caused to a building. He also has previous convictions for possession of drugs, burglary, theft and common assault.
Archdeacon Pierpoint said the mummified remains had been preserved for hundreds of years by natural means and many tourists visited the church, providing annual revenues of between €75,000 to €100,000.
He said there have been no tours since the fire, which has resulted in a ‘financial crisis’ for the parish as the funds go to maintain the church, which was built in 1192. He also outlined the emotional and mental impact on him and his parishioners.
He described what had occurred as a loss not only for the parish but for Dublin and the nation.
‘We are the custodians of the human remains in the crypt. We have the privilege and burden to ensure such remains are passed onto the generations to come’.
He said two of the mummies had been ‘burnt beyond recognition’ while the water used to put out the fire had caused damage to others. He said this was ‘unavoidable’ as the priority was to extinguish the fire.
The Archdeacon told the court the parish would seek approval from Dublin City Council to exhume the damaged remains and ‘have them re-interred into another vault which will be closed to everyone’.
Oisin Clarke BL, defending, said his client is remorseful, ashamed, embarrassed and recognises the impact of his actions.
Topiter has addiction issues and, on the day in question, had been drinking heavily and had also taken tablets. Topiter has limited recollection of what happened.
‘NO SINISTER MOTIVE’
Mr Clarke said there was ‘no sinister motive’ or animosity towards the church behind his client’s actions, but it ‘just happened to be where he was at the time’.
Counsel said his client’s objective was ‘not to cause damage’ that day. He outlined his client has longstanding mental health difficulties. Topiter has been in custody since his arrest and is doing well.
Mr Clarke noted his client has a similar conviction, but said this offending is ‘very different’.
Topiter read a letter to the court in which he apologised to the court and to the Irish public for ‘jeopardising a national relic’.
He said he took full responsibility for his actions and had been working to ‘create positive change’ in his life while in custody.
Imposing sentence, Judge Martin Nolan described the offence as ‘very serious’. He said Topiter started the fire ‘for reasons only known to himself’ and as a result, ‘ancient relics were damaged, if not destroyed’.
He said Topiter’s relevant conviction was an aggravating factor. The judge said a characteristic of fire is its unpredictability, and when it is started, a person doesn’t know what damage it may cause.
He said it was ‘no great excuse’ that Topiter was intoxicated at the time, noting that ‘for whatever reason when he’s insensible, he decides to start fires’. ‘That seems to be a particular vice’.
‘SERIOUS MATTER’
He noted there is mitigation including Topiter’s signed guilty plea, his background and personal circumstances.
Judge Nolan said Topiter caused ‘considerable damage’ and the court considered it a ‘serious matter’.
Judge Nolan backdated the six-year sentence to June 11 last, when Topiter went into custody.
In the victim impact statement, Archdeacon Pierpoint said the incident had also had a mental and emotional effect on him and his parishioners, but the ‘outpouring of revulsion’ both nationally and internationally had been of ‘great emotional support to me and to parishioners’.
He said that contact from government officials and a letter from the President had ‘meant so much at a difficult time for the parish’.
The Archdeacon confirmed to Oisin Clarke BL, defending, that counsel had indicated Topiter’s remorse to him before the court hearing.
The court heard a tour guide at the church had locked the mummy crypt after completing a tour around 4 pm on June 11 last.
The guide later went to lock the gates for the evening. On their way to the mummy crypt, they smelt smoke and could hear a noise.
They then saw smoke in the crypt and initially thought something electrical was the cause.
When the guide got closer, they saw Topiter behind the locked gate, hiding against a wall.
They asked Topiter what he was doing there, but his reply was rambling, saying he didn’t want to leave and he wanted to die there.
Garda Simon O’Reilly told Diana Stuart BL, prosecuting, that the guide unlocked the gate and told Topiter to leave as gardai had been contacted. At this point, smoke was filling the crypt.
ARREST
After Topiter left, the guide went to the mummy vault and saw a fire. When they returned to their office, a colleague called the emergency services.
Topiter was arrested several hours later. When interviewed, he was unable to provide a coherent account of his actions but did identify himself on CCTV.
He told gardai he had been drinking heavily and couldn’t remember what had happened.
He told gardai he had a purpose here. He continued that it ‘sounds crazy’, but he was neither God nor Jesus. ‘Wherever I go, I make people happy. I was born in the wrong time.’
A second interview ended after Topiter became irate, refused to answer further questions and ripped papers. Topiter has been in custody since his arrest.
Gda O’Reilly agreed with Mr Clarke that Topiter’s replies during the interview were rambling.
He also confirmed that a doctor was called while Topiter was in custody due to concerns about his physical condition and that Topiter attempted to self-harm while in custody.
It was further accepted that Topiter identified himself on CCTV but could not explain why he was there and had little recollection of what happened.
Mr Clarke submitted to the court that his client told the guide that he wanted to die and it ‘appears what he was doing was an attempt to end his life’.
It was ‘fortunate’ that Topiter survived, but it was ‘unfortunate’ that the location he chose was ‘of such historical significance’ to the people of Ireland, counsel said.
PSYCHOLOGICAL REPORT
Topiter is abstinent, working and has enhanced prisoner status.
Mr Clarke said his client had had a difficult childhood and entered state care in Romania when he was 10.
He said his client is pro-social when he is sober and has longstanding mental health difficulties.
His client was subjected to neglect and physical and sexual abuse while he was in care. Topiter’s education was intermittent, but he has a long work history in hospitality in Romania, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Mr Clarke said his client went to Spain, then to the United Kingdom in 2008, and was ‘human trafficked’ to Northern Ireland, where he lived in a shed, worked long hours and had a ‘meagre amount of food’.
Counsel said his client was deported from Northern Ireland to Romania and then moved to Ireland in 2019.
Mr Clarke said his client was working in a hotel, involved with a charity and also set up a soup kitchen to help the homeless.
A psychological report was also handed to the court.