This article is from page 38 of the 2013-12-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 38 JPG
THE body of the 52-year-old Czech National was found in a laneway beside Supermac’s fast food restaurant on O’Connell Street in May. Mr Josef Pavelka died on a Saturday night, just days after leaving a homeless shelter in Galway. Josef and his friend Piotr Baram came to national attention earlier in the year when it was revealed they lived in a public toilet in Ennis. “Josef is my best friend and he is dead, he is dead. I am sick. I am sick about that,” said Mr Baram.
A Garda spokesman said at the time that gardaí are liaising with Interpol to contact the deceased’s family in the Czech Republic. Mr Pavelka had recently underwent surgery and had severe difficulties with alcohol. He walked with the aid of a crutch.
Recalling his friend’s final hours, Piotr said, “We drink together Saturday. After that he go to sleep in church. Later the church is closed, he must go out. I go to my place to sleep. He go to his place, I don’t know where, O’Connell Street somewhere.”
Mr Pavelka came to Ireland in 2007 and worked in construction industry and as a painter. He and Piotr Baram were fixtures on the streets of Ennis. They could be seen every morning standing in the laneway near Fawl’s Pub on O’Connell Street. The pair lived for a period in a tent in the Fair Green.
They received food and assistance from the Church and the St Vincent de Paul. They were firm friends for seven years. Piotr Baram said his friend had been married with children in the Czech Republic.
He said he thought Mr Pavelka liked football back at home. Mr Pavelka’s plight came to national attention last month after a report from the Probation Services disclosed that he lived for a period in a public toilet. Mr Pavelka appeared in court on public order charges. Judge Patrick Durcan described the situation as a “scandal”. As a result the men secured emergency accommodation at a tourist hostel in Galway. They returned to Ennis two weeks ago where, Piotr says, they slept rough on the streets.