A rapist who made a hoax bomb threat from his prison cell to the home of the Minister for Justice has been sentenced to two years in prison.
The sentence will mean an additional two years in custody for 54-year-old Michael Murray who previously had an expected release date of 2036.
Murray has 40 previous convictions including rape, sexual assault, harassment, abduction of a child, false imprisonment, threats to kill, burglary and theft.
He is serving a 19-year sentence for rape which is due to expire in May and be followed by a consecutive sentence of 16 years for harassment and making death threats.
He was convicted of the latest offence after a trial earlier this month. He had denied the charge.
Murray, formerly of Seafield Road, Killiney, Dublin, was found guilty of knowingly making a false report giving rise to an apprehension for the safety of someone else while he was imprisoned in the Midlands Prison, Portlaoise on 7 March 7, 2021.
The trial heard that on 7 March 2021 a call was made to the Samaritans by an anonymous male asking if they could take a message.
The caller then said it was the INLA and that explosives had been planted at the home of the Minister for Justice and her family. The caller also gave a password of ‘Red October’ and said it was do with a court case happening in Dublin the following day.
Gardaí went to the home of Minister for Justice Helen McEntee but found no evidence of any explosives.
The call was traced back to Murray’s cell within the Midlands prison. He was the sole occupant of the cell at the time.
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