A senior garda has been appointed to investigate the alleged intimidation of witnesses in the Det Garda Jerry McCabe murder case, the Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, announced last night.
In a parallel development, three human rights organisations yesterday called for an independent inquiry into allegations that gardai abused detainees in custody during the investigation.
The announcement of the inquiry comes on the eve of a Dail debate on the collapse of the murder case after the four accused pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in the Special Criminal Court last week.
Their change of pleas and the withdrawal of the capital murder charge followed the refusal by at least three witnesses to co-operate with the prosecution. A key witness, Mr Patrick Harty, who had admitted providing sanctuary for the IRA gang which shot dead Det Garda McCabe, refused to take the oath in court or give evidence. He was imprisoned until the trial ended. His solicitor said Mr Harty was "in fear of his life".
Gardai close to the case said there had been intimidation of witnesses. Mr Harty's evidence was key to the prosecution case and when he withdrew the Director of Public Prosecutions decided to accept the manslaughter pleas.
Yesterday, the Garda Commissioner announced the appointment of Supt Kieran McGann, who is stationed in Fermoy, Co Cork, to oversee the investigation of the alleged intimidation of witnesses.
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties, Amnesty International and British Irish Rights Watch said that, as the McCabe case has now been disposed of in the courts, the Government must take action on allegations of physical and psychological abuse of up to 60 people arrested during the investigation.
Speculation about alleged ill-treatment of detainees led to an internal Garda investigation in 1996. However, the ICCL, Amnesty International and BIRW continued their own investigations and called on the Government to initiate an independent inquiry.
The ICCL report contains statements alleging beatings, threats of hanging, threats to arrest other family members, Russian roulette "games" and racist remarks about one detainee's adopted Romanian children. The Department of Justice, responding to the ICCL's report, told the council in January 1998: "It would not be appropriate for [the Minister] to take any action on the allegations of ill-treatment . . . until such stage as the courts have fully disposed of cases which are before them arising out of the murder."
The ICCL is to hold an executive meeting tonight to discuss further action.
Ms Jane Winter, director of BIRW, told The Irish Times last night that if the Government did not institute an independent inquiry she would raise the issue at the next meeting of the UN Human Rights Commission in its discussion of Ireland's compliance with the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights later this year.
The Dail is to hear statements from the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, and from the justice spokesmen for Fine Gael and Labour on the Det Garda McCabe case this afternoon. These will be followed by questions and answers.
Fine Gael's spokesman on justice, Mr Jim Higgins, said he would be calling for a full explanation as to why "the State so dramatically accepted a change in plea from capital murder to manslaughter".
The Labour Party's spokesman on justice, Mr Brendan Howlin, said the issue of alleged Garda ill-treatment "will be addressed".