THE four prison officers held hostage by inmates in Mountjoy's high security separation unit were released unharmed late last night.
The siege ended after the six prisoners who had been holding the officers hostage agreed to give themselves up. They insisted that their solicitors be present during the release of the hostages, apparently to ensure that they would not be subjected to retribution.
Four solicitors arrived at the prison yesterday evening and the end of the siege was signalled at 10.20 p.m. when a single officer was released and taken to the Mater Hospital.
It is thought that this officer had been feeling the effects of the strain of being bound and locked in a recreation room with the prisoners, who had threatened all the officers with a blood filled syringe.
An hour later the remaining three officers were released and were also taken to hospital.
The releases were immediately welcomed by the Minister for Justice, Mrs Owen, who visited Mountjoy last night to congratulate the members of the negotiating team, who had maintained a dialogue with the six hostage takers for just over two days.
The release of the first officer came as a great relief to the negotiators, whose hopes of an early end to the siege had diminished earlier yesterday.
The Department of Justice had pursued a planned hostage negotiation operation throughout the two days, but Garda and Army reinforcements were on hand in, case the hostages were attacked.
Three units of the Army's Ranger Wing, including snipers, were in the vicinity of the prison, prepared to storm the separation unit. A large force of gardai was on standby in case widespread disturbances broke out inside Mountjoy.
Tension in the separation unit had increased some hours before the siege ended, but the situation calmed down late last night when the prisoners apparently began to realise that their action was achieving nothing.
During the day the prisoners continued to talk to negotiators through a window. Food and other necessities were delivered to the recreation room throughout the duration of the siege.
One of the main difficulties, faced by the negotiators was that the prisoners did not appear to have any leader or spokesman. An initial suspicion that Mr Paul Ward, who is facing a charge of conspiracy to murder the journalist Veronica Guerin was the ringleader was discounted when he continued to make demands only in relation to his own case.
Three of the other host age takers - Eddie Ferncombe, who is serving a nine year sentence for the manslaughter of a young Mormon missionary he stabbed in the heart; Warren Dumbrell, a 22 year old drug addict convicted of robbery; and Joseph Cooper (26), described as a dangerous criminal - also negotiated only in respect of their own grievances.
The remaining two hostage takers, Edward Feery and Stephen Galvin, were not thought to have made any particular demands. Feery, from Ballymun, Dublin, is serving eight years for grievous bodily harm. Galvin, from Knocknaheeney, Co Cork, is serving 10 years for robbery.
All six were described as highly troublesome prisoners who had been segregated in the separation unit because of continual disputes with other prisoners and attacks on prison officers.