Top Cop Apologises Over Morris Findings

A report from the long-running Morris Tribunal has this week concluded that a number of people were arrested and detained unlawfully in the investigation into the death of Richie Barron.

As a result, the Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy has said he fully accepted the Morris Tribunal report's findings, adding that it was a matter of profound regret that the force mistreated the families involved.

"I want to take this opportunity to apologise to those people," he said.

It has now been proved that detectives manufactured evidence, made wrongful arrests and acted completely improperly towards prisoners during a botched murder investigation, the damning report found.

The findings of the sixth report of the Morris Tribunal into corruption by rogue gardaí in Co Donegal also found that officers had "cheapened justice and damaged the reputations of innocent families".

The inquiry, which has led to ongoing reforms of the force, warned that the investigation into the death of cattle dealer Richie Barron, in Raphoe, Co Donegal, in October 1996 had severely damaged the reputation of gardaí.

Mr Murphy said he was deeply disappointed that the Tribunal also found that some of his officers were less than forthright with the inquiry.

"The vast majority of gardaí perform their duties in an ethical manner, never violating or abusing the authority granted to them and working at all times to meet the needs of the communities they serve," he said.

"The small minority who fail to observe those professional standards do a grave disservice to their colleagues and dishonour the history and tradition of a proud organisation."

"It cheapened the presumption of innocence and undermined the truthful resolution of a very tragic case," inquiry chairman Mr Justice Frederick Morris said in his latest report.

The former High Court judge said his latest findings were concerned with the potential for catastrophic injustice when laws are flouted, protections abandoned and lies told by some gardaí in pursuit of those whom they regard as guilty.

The tribunal was set up to investigate allegations of garda corruption in Donegal in the 1990s.

Mr Barron was found dead on a roadside near Raphoe in October 1996 following an apparent hit-and-run.

The gardaí treated the incident as murder and today's report said a number of people were unlawfully arrested and detained as part of the investigation.

It says some of the detainees were mistreated in custody, mainly through verbal and, in some cases, physical abuse.

The tribunal also says it does not accept the evidence of several gardaí in relation to the investigation.

Meanwhile, today's report also dealt with claims that conversations between solicitors and detainees at Letterkenny Garda Station were secretly recorded by the Gardaí.

But, it concluded that this allegation is false.

(BMcC)