'Dating apps are lethal and dangerous places' Kildare judge tells man seeking court protection

Kildare’s presiding district court judge had warned that extreme care needs to be taken by people using dating apps.

He made the remarks after asking a man how he met his former girlfriend and being told he used a dating app.

READ NEXT A historic (but derelict) 200 year old Kildare house 'should be protected'

The man came to Naas District Court seeking protection after his ex had turned up at his workplace and his home, which he shares with an elderly relative.

He said he worries about what might happen if the woman comes to the house when he is not there.

The woman, who is living in the Munster area, had to get several bus connections to get to where he lives and works.

He also said she was accompanied by her child and had no immediate way of getting back to her address because she does not drive.

He said he was afraid he’d lose his job because she came to where he works with the child.

He also said he had reported it to the gardaí and the woman, who didn’t attend the hearing and was not represented, had threatened to kill herself.

Judge Desmond Zaidan commented that every second relationship seems to originate via a dating app.

Dating apps, he said, are “lethal and dangerous places", adding “when I was young people met at social occasions or through friends.”

He granted the man a protection order (and adjourned it to June 8).