Tag: Garda

Jeffrey Donaldson alleges that a Garda mole was involved in IRA and responsible for the murder of two RUC officers!

https://villagemagazine.ie/new-dup-leader-jeffrey-donaldson-has-alleged-that-a-garda-mole-was-involved-in-the-ira-murder-of-two-ruc-officers-in-the-republic/

First Lithuanian to Face Irish Republican Related Charges/Offences in Ireland.

The trial has opened at the Special Criminal Court in Dublin of the first Lithuanian to face “terrorist” related offences.

Eimantas Valteris (33) was arrested by gardai in 2013 as part of an ongoing operation to counter dissident republican activities in the border area.

Mr Valteris is the first Lithuanian to be charged before the Special Criminal Court.

Mr Valteris, with an address at Park Vale, Grange Rath, Drogheda, Co Meath, pleaded not guilty to the unlawful possession of a .32 inch auto (7.65mm) calibre IZH 79-8 model Baikal make semi-automatic pistol bearing serial number TPB358706 at Balmoral Industrial Estate, Navan, Co. Meath on June 10th, 2013.

Opening the prosecution case, Mr Tony Mc Gillicuddy BL said that Valteris operated a car sales depot at the Balmoral Industrial Estate. He was observed by gardai arriving at the depot on the afternoon of June 10th, 2013.

A man was seen getting out of a silver VW Passat car and talking to Valteris. Another black VW Passat car arrived at the yard and another man was seen speaking to Valteris.

At 2.50 pm Valteris was seen going to an nearby yard where a red Fiat Ducato van was parked. At 3.20 pm the black VW Passat car came back to the yard and stopped close to where Valteris was standing. A man was observed opening the boot of the Passat and then the car left the yard.

The VW Passat was stopped by gardai in Castlebellingham, Co Louth at 4.10 pm and a semi automatic pistol was found wrapped in material in a box in the boot. During a later search of Valteris’s yard €2,000 was found in another car.

“The prosecution case is that he (Valteris) was storing a firearm on his premises. He performed a storage and transfer role in respect of that firearm,” counsel added.

The trial is continuing before Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, presiding, sitting with Judge Gerard Haughton and Judge Gerard Griffin at Special Criminal Court Number 2

https://www.facebook.com/IrishRPN/

With many thanks to: Irish Republican Prisoner News.

Smithwick’s significance is political ‘NOT’ legal !!!

If the IRA was fighting a war, then this was a war crime – along with all their war crimes from Kingsmill to the Birmingham pub bombs.

WHO WOULD you rather beleive: Gerry Adams or former RUC Chief Constable, the late Sir John Hermon?

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Mr Adams has come under attack from a number of politicians and commentators for his comments on the findings of the Smithwick Tribunal. He said that Chief Superintendent Breen and Superintendent Buchanan had a laissez-faire attitude to their safety. It was an insensitive remark, but what if someone else had made thatt point, would it have been acceptable? As it happens, someone else did make that remark – more or less. Quoted in Toby Harnden‘s book “Bandit Country” Sir John said of the late Bob Buchanan‘s activities on the day he died: “He did not follow basic, elementary security procedures.” Hermon claimed that Mr Buchanan did not beleive in taking precautions because, as a devout Christian, he beleived God was in control. If Sir John was right, so was Mr Adams – although Sir John does not appear to have been vilified. Reaction to the Adams comments tells us three things: any inquiry into the past is interpreted as political ammunition for the present; too many politicians do not want the truth about the past, they just want their prejudices confirmed and, thirdly, personalising our politics tends to suffocate valid political tends to suffocate valid political comment.

With due respect to the two dead RUC officers and their families, Smithwick’s significance is political rather than legal. Using the word “collusion” has major political implications. It is a heavily loaded word, which would probably be worth a million points in Irish political Scrabble. But the possible existence of one or even two Garda informants does not represent collusion. Gerry Adams said that Smithwick’s idea of collusion is very different in form and scale from the collusion that occoured in the North. Mr Adams is right. The IRA presumbly had moles in many organnisations, possibly even the RUC. But Smithwick’s findings allow unionists to use the word collusion (without firm evidence) thereby giving them a higher moral ground than previously. Unionists suggest there was also collusion in 1969 when the Provisional IRA was founded. There was certainly an attempt by some elements in Fianna Fail, the Irish intelligence service and assorted Catholics to take control of the Civil Rights Movement and to direct the then IRA away from socialism. Some of those involved at the time say as early as Sunday August 24 1969 – just over a week after the burning of Bombay Street – older, non-active IRA men meet these elements and agreed to break away from the existing IRA leadership in Belfast in return for money from Dublin.

There were two founds for Northern relief – the official Irish government fund for refugees and a Fianna Fail fund. The two may well have become intermingled, but there is no evidence that the government as a corporate body was intent on anything more of that was a political window dressing. However, the lack of evidence on collusion then and 1989 does not vindicate the Provisional IRA campaign of violence. It was unnecessary, sectarian, brutal and futile. The deaths of Harry Breen and Bob Buchanan, for example, broke the Geneva Convention by killing unarmed men and, in particular, by killing one who was injured and trying to surrender. If the IRA was fighting a war, then this was a war crime – along with all their other war crimes from Kingsmill to the Birmigham pub bombs. That is where Sinn Fein is open to critcism. What was the Provisional IRA campaign for? Pearse Doherty TD said this week that the campaign was to defend local communities. (Whom does he think the 21 dead in the Birmingham pub bombs were going to attack?) However, also this week, John O’Dowd described it as ” a conflict between nations and communities”. This largely confirms that Sinn Fein has finally abandoned Irish Republicanism and opted instead for Britain’s two nations theory, by suggesting that only Catholics can be Irish. The political impact of Smithwick’s is that it nudges our history towards the erroneous veiw that the violence here was carried out by two sets of paramilitaries, each backed through collusion by different national governments. The two nations theory is slowly becoming official which, oddly, suits Sinn Fein. The above comments represent valid veiws on Sinn Fein policies, past and present. You can agree or disagree with them. In that the context you can agree or disagree with Mr Adams, but no one has the right to disagree with the truth just because they dislike the person speaking it. Personal attacks are no substitute for political analysis.

With many thanks to: Patrick Murphy, The Irish News.

A letter that appeared in The Irish News – Tuesday December 10 2013.

664421_445022892211878_450129189_oAbuse from ‘voices of perfection’ is unwarrantd.

THE CONCLUSION of the Smithwick Tribunal that Garda officers colluded in the murder of superintendent Breen and Buchanan is deeply disturbing and if true that one or more members of An Garda Siochana ( the guardians of the peace) colluded with the IRA in the murders of superintendents Breen and Buchanan then not only are they guilty of murder but they let down an entire police force.

Unfortunatley there are now unionist politicians who remained silent or indeed excused compelling evidence of collusion in the North over the years but delighted to rush to the media to smear the entire Garda Siochana and that is not only unjustified but it must not be allowed to happen. Garda officers, many of them now retired, were stationed in the border areas during the best part of their lives to protect life and limb. Is history now to be rewtitten, as it often is, to misrepresent those officers as villains involved in collusion leading to the murder of police in the north? I should think not. During the period from the 1970s to the 1990s the Republic, with very limited resources, spent more per head of population on security than the British did, much of that in the border areas. Often Garda stations on the southern side of the border had more manpower than their counterparts on the northern side and they worked for a fraction of the salary their RUC conterparts but they did it not for money but to protect the lives of people.

They were noble officers who were not influenced by the IRA or any other illegal organisation. Is this now to be dismissed because there may have been one or perhaps more rotten apples in the barrel? Like police forces all over the world the Garda have had their problems and the need for reform but they do not deserve the kind of abuse which is now emanating from the usual suspects who ignored, dismissed or excused widespread collusion in the north but now want to present themselves as the voice of perfection ignoring the fact that Garda officers made a massive contribution to limiting the number of people who may otherwise have died in those days of total madness.

With thanks to: John Dallat MLA, SDLP, East Derry.

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GARDAI SAY THEY WON’T TOLERATE TRAPPINGS AHEAD OF REPUBLICAN’S FUNERAL

GARDA commissioner Martin Calli an has warned paramilitary trappings will not be tolerated at any funerals in the Republic. He was speaking ahead of the funeral of Seamus McKenna (58) who died after falling from scaffolding while working on the roof of a property near Dundalk last week.

END GARDA HARASSMENT

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Seamus McKenna (58)

A member of Oglaigh na hEireann (ONH), Mr McKenna, was one of five men sued by relatives of some of the 29 people killed by the 1998 Omagh bomb which was carried out by the now defunct Real IRA. OOriginally from Silver bridge in Co Armagh, he was sentenced to six years for constructing a bomb in Co Louth in 2003.

Although not speaking specifically about McKenna’s funeral, commissioner Callinan said no paramilitary displays will be tolerated. Garda came in for criticism last year when masked men fired a volley of shots over the coffin of murdered republican Alan Ryan in Dublin. Uniformed men also flanked a hearse carrying the 32-year-old’s remains through the city. McKenna’s funeral is to be held in Ravensdale, Co Louth tommorow.

With many thanks to : The Irish News.

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WATCHDOG COMPLAINS OF GARDA DELAYS IN HELPING ITS INQUIRIES !!

‘We are just not getting the cooperation we require – Simon O’Brien.

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STATE investigators probing alleged Garda wrongdoing have accused the force of not cooperating with them. The Garda Siochana Ombudsman Comnission (GSOC) said it had no option but to go public .th its frustrations over “unacceptable” delays and the refusal of officers to hand over documents crucial to its inquires.

Simon O’Brien, chairman of the watchdog, suggested the behaviour of tProtocols would not be tolerated within police forces in other countries. “I was a senior police officer in London’s Metropolitan Police. I was there for 32 years,” he said. “Certainly if a request for information came to me from IPCC [Independent Police Complaints Commission]…. then boxes of documents would be handed over in the morning to IPCC investigators.” Mr O’Brien said he had been having top-level talks over thei past year and a half which have still not resolved the Garda’s lack of cooperation. He said he would not have gone public if the problem was not widescale but he said it was clear there were “systemic” issues in the force that had stymied the commission’s work. “We are just not getting the cooperation we require,” he said. “The numbers speak for themselves.” The commision’s annual report reveals a number of cases where the Garda refused to hand over documents, gave only limited access to files or delayed giving any requested details.

On one occasion, the commission had to wait 542 days for a peice of information to be handed over during an inquiry. Mr O’Brein said it was often routine requests for basic information that were being obstructed. “We are not just talking about performance, safety, state security,” he said. “This is your mother, your son or daughter making a complaint about the Garda, possibly, and awaiting an inordinate amount of time for that complaint to be resolved.” Protocals agreed in 2007 compel the Garda to hand over documents to the watchdog within 30 days. Mr O’Brien said this deadline was adhered to in only a small number of cases. The commission also said it was greatly concerned that nearly three quarters of the force’s 567 internal investigations into alleged wrongdoing last year were taking longer than the 12-week timeline for such inquires. Of those, 21 have been dragging on for two years or more. Mr O’Brien said the watchdog had powers to enforce its role. He said the commission would rather not arrest officers or raid Garda stations but such action was possible in the furture. “I do not wish to be sitting on this platform again next year saying things have not improved,” he said. Garda commissioner Martin Callinan said he had set up a new office and email address to deal with ombudsman commission requests. On the internal inquires, he said both sides agreed it was usaally not possible to meet the 12-week timeline and talks were continuing about extending the deadlines to between 16 and 24 weeks.

With many thanks to : Brian Hutton, Irish News.

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SENIOR GARDA CRITICISES PSNI/RUC ON COLLUSION DATA !

” We weren’t given half a chance to respond “.

A SENIOR of  critticised the PSNI/RUC‘s handling of intelligence about alleged collusion between gardai and the IRA. Detective Chief SSuperintendent Peter Kirwan said his force was not given a ” half chance ” to respond to claims made to the Smithwick tribunal despite usually having a seamless relationship with the PSNI/RUC and British security services.

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A summary of intelligence which highlighted alleged collusion was given to the tribunal by PSNI/RUC assistant chief constable Drew Harris and made public in October. Mr Kirwan, heado of the security section of crime and security at Garda headquarters, said : ” We have no issue with the sharing of information on the workings  of the relationship between PSNI and the British security services with the tribunal. ” The issue araises when the sharing with others directly impacts on the Garda organisation and we’re not given even a half chance of interpreting what it means.” Mr Kirwan said gardai had only been given the intelligence in a brief summary, as had the tribunal, and had not been given access to more detailed information to meaningfully investigate or act on.

Mr Justice Peter Smithwick is investigating whether gardai colluded with IRA units on the murders of RUC chief superintendent Harry Breen and superintendent Bob Buchanan – two of the most senior officers killed in the Troubles. They were shot dead in an ambush after leaving a meeting at Dundalk Garda Station on March 20 1989. Solicitors for their families urged Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan to investigate Mr Kirwan’s claims. ” It is very regrattable indeed to hear such a senior Garda officer complain that the wide-ranging and significant recent intelligence has not been properly shared by the PSNI and British security services and cannot be meaningfully investigiated without normal sharing arrangements being followed,” John McBurney and Erinie Waterworth said in a statement. ” Clearly this needs very urgent attention with a view to seeing all aspects fully and thoroughly investigated by the commissioner.” The 12 strands of live intelligence in the summary previously given to the tribunal were deemed reliable and accurate by Mr Harris, who denied the PSNI/RUC had “sat on” the information and withheld it from gardai.

It claimed gardai passed on information leading to the Provisionals ‘ murder of Lord Justice Gibson and his wife in 1987 and that a senior IRA member had gardai passing information to him. Mary Laverty, senior counsel for the tribunal, asked Mr Kirwan whether he beleived Mr Harris’s “hands are tied” as he had moved from his custom of sharing all information with gardai. He replied : “I can’t see that.” He said he has the greatest respect for Mr Harris. Ms Laverty also asked how computor hard drives were destroyed hours before hundreads of gardai, PSNI and customs officers raided a fuel-laundering plant along the border in recent weeks. “Somewhere along the way somebody had passed on information because of the number of people involved,” she said. “I do not want to comment too specifically on that,” Mr Kirwan replied. “Generally speaking, over the years, I can think of several examples where a large force of gardai are descending on a rural part of Ireland. “It’s very hard to camouflage that.”

With many thanks to : Sarah Stack, Irish News.

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EIGHT DUBLIN MEN IN COURT ON IRA MEMBERSHIP CHARGES !

EIGHT Dublin men last night aappeared before a sitting of the city’s Special Criminal Court charged with membership of the IRA. They were all arrested on Friday after a search of a commerc. l premises in Clondalkin, west of the capital.

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The search was part of a Garda probe of ddissident republican activities.

Declan Phelan (32), Damon McNamee (32), Kevin Barry (38), John Brock, Darren Murphy (42), Hubert Duffy (45), Does Christie (49), and William Jackson (53) were charged with membership of an unlawful organization on March 29. None of the defndents replied when the charges were put to them in court. Detective Garda Darren Martin agreed with counsel for Darren Murphy that Mr Murphy had injuries to his face including a laceration above the right eye.

Gardai outside the Special Criminal Court in Dublin last night as eight men were remanded in custody.

A doctor attended to the accused man during his detention. None of the eight applied for bail. Mr Justice Paul Butler, presiding, said the court would grant a disclosure order under section 56 of the Criminal Justice Act 2007 for any recording of the questioning of the accused men during their detention. The court will also order that a transcript be provided for all parties and will treat last night’s sitting as a trail date in respect of the eight men. Mr Justice Butler, sitting with Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan and Judge William Hamill, remanded the men in custody with liberty to applay for bail to appear in court on Friday. He said the court would also recommend that Mr Murphy receive whatever medical treatment required while in custody.

With many thanks to : Irish News.

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