Burglars Get 'Heroic' Funeral With Offers Like Screw Drivers, Flashlights; Priest Condemns Act

A 29-year-old burglar, who died in a car accident, was given a grand-yet-bizarre farewell, which featured his hearse speeding through city roads and breaking red lights.

Dean Maguire, described as a member of an organized crime gang, died two weeks ago when the BMW he was traveling in rammed into a truck at Tallaght in Ireland. The car was on the wrong side of the road when the accident happened, reports Irish Times.

His friends and alleged gang members Karl Freeman and Graham Taylor also died in the crash. Police believe the men may have been planning a break-in at the time of their deaths.

A removal was held on Thursday night, prior to Maguire's funeral, which showed cars driving erratically behind the hearse. The funeral procession was escorted by several motorcycles, which stopped to rev their engines.

The offertory gifts included a flashlight, screwdriver and his registration plates. A video of the funeral has since gone viral, and the police are investigating the incidents.

During the funeral service, a member of Maguire's family said "not a day "will go by that they would not think of Maguire." "Sorry for the language father. Rest in peace you f**king legend," she added.

The video of the funeral has been viewed 56,000 times. A printed banner, featuring his face and the words "You know the score, get on the floor, don’t be funny, show me the money," was also put up at the ceremony.

The funeral of Taylor, which was held a day after, was equally bizarre. His coffin was brought to the service in a horse-drawn carriage, escorted by motorcycles and scramblers. The flower arrangments depicting a mobile phone and a cannabis leaf accompanied the coffin. Taylor had 121 previous convictions that included dangerous driving, burglary, assault and criminal damage.

However, the outlandish funeral ceremonies have irked the local parish priest who condemned "the glorification of criminality."

Fr Donald Roche said he did not conduct the service but was there to ensure Covid-19 regulations. "People poured in at the start. I tried to lock the church and only did so with difficultly," the priest told The Irish Times.

However, when he turned away to assist other mourners, someone opened the door, and people streamed in. "They came in so fast that I wasn’t able to count properly. Tapes, which had been placed on pews to restrict their use were ripped off," he added.

According to the priest, he had no clue what the offerings were going to be. He called the banner "terrible" and added that it had no place at a Catholic funeral.

Freeman, who was driving the BMW at the time of the crash, was also buried Monday. He had over 60 convictions and was described by a judge as a "menace to society" while being jailed for assaulting a 77-year-old woman.