The pipe bomb discovered by police in which Cassidy was travelling with two other men.
A Derry man jailed having two bombs in the city has had his sentence increased by two years
Court of Appeal judges ruled Eamon Cassidy should now serve five years in prison and five on licence.
The new term was imposed after Northern Ireland’s Director of Public Prosecutions Barra McGrory argued an original eight-year sentence was unduly lenient.
Cassidy (51), of Glenfada Park, had admitted two counts of possession of explosives with intent to endanger life.
One of the bombs had been left at Derry Courthouse in March 2011.
In September that year, he was in a car stopped by police on the Buncrana Road.
An improvised pipe bomb was discovered under the front seat.
Cassidy told police he had found the device while out for a walk and had been taking it to a priest as he did not want any children to be injured.
DNA taken from him was later matched to a sample recovered from a 50-kilo beer keg bomb found opposite the Bishop Street courthouse.
Two other men who were also in the car, Daniel Doyle (48) of Bluebell Hill Gardens Eugene McLoone (56) of Abercorn Road, were jailed for seven and a half years and seven years respectively. They will serve half their sentences in prison and half on licence.
Increasing Cassidy’s jail term today, Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan, sitting with Lord Justice Girvan and Mr Justice Weir, held that the proper starting point in sentencing should have been 15 years.
Giving credit for Cassidy’s guilty pleas and personal circumstances, along with the issue of double jeopardy, the court ruled a 10-year sentence should be imposed.
The sentence is to be split evenly – five years in prison and five on licence.
Tags:
