Relationship with woman led to ‘unfair’ removal from taskforce, garda claims

A garda has alleged he was wrongfully removed from a special taskforce tackling organised crime due to his relationship with a woman. Two members of the woman’s family, now deceased, were involved in serious criminality, but the woman herself has “no connection whatsoever with any person involved in criminality”, Garda Joseph Kavanagh said.

He has brought proceedings against the Garda Commissioner with the aim of getting himself restored to the Special Crime Taskforce (SCTF), attached to the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau.

Represented by Paul McGarry SC, with Breffni Gordon, Garda Kavanagh claimed the actions taken against him were “unjustifiable and unfair” and said he feared they would have adverse consequences for his career as a garda.

He was removed from the taskforce on December 5th last, hours after gardaí went to, and searched, his partner’s apartment, where he had spent the night. Nothing illegal or illicit was discovered in the search, he said.

Statement

In a sworn statement, the garda said he had been seeing the woman for four years and she had “no connection whatsoever with any person involved in criminality”.

His partner was “a respected member of the community” who “deplores crime and criminality” and is “a law-abiding citizen”, he said. Two members of her immediate family, now deceased, were involved in criminal activity.

Hours after the December 5th search of his partner’s home, he was called to a meeting with his superiors and told he “needed time away from SCTF because of what happened that morning”, he said. He was told that decision was made by an assistant commissioner.

During the meeting, reference was made to his relationship with the woman and that was offered as a reason for his removal from SCTF, he said.

Nobody could impugn his partner’s reputation and the events amounted to “unjustified interference” with his personal life and career, he said.

Transferred

He said that he was transferred to Ballyfermot to perform uniform duties and that, since the search and his transfer, he had become the subject of extremely derogatory terms on social media. A message on WhatsApp had said: “Member of SCTF caught in the scratcher with a major criminal.”

He has been a member of the Garda Síochána since 2007 with an unblemished record, and has received numerous commendations, he said. He was the first garda to successfully complete the advanced undercover course offered by London's Metropolitan Police.

He claimed his removal from the unit could not be justified, was made without good reason and was not done for the proper management or organisation of the force. He claims his removal amounts to a disciplinary procedure in breach of his rights.

When the matter came before Mr Justice Paul Gilligan at the High Court on Wednesday, he granted lawyers for Garda Kavanagh permission to serve short notice of the proceedings on the commissioner and returned the matter to next week.