A round-up of other news in brief...
Bomb forces evacuation of Garda station
The largest Garda station in the west of Ireland had to be evacuated last night after the discovery of a suspected bomb, writes John Fallon.
Mill Street Garda station in Galway city was evacuated after gardaí searching searching two prisoners found what appeared to be a pipe bomb shortly after 6.30pm.
Dozens of gardaí were evacuated along with a number of prisoners and members of the public who were in the station. Gardaí also closed off the entire street because of concerns about the device.
The Army Bomb Disposal Unit was summoned to the scene and the “viable” device was made safe last night.
Search for missing walker
A search was taking place at the Macgillycuddy Reeks in Co Kerry last night for a missing walker.
Members of the Kerry Mountain Rescue Team were searching for a man in his 40s who had camped on the mountains overnight.
The man had been walking with a group of people in the area on Wednesday. When they finished the walk he left the group to camp out and was due to meet with friends yesterday morning.
Bank lent 3.6m for ‘bogland’
Bank of Ireland has claimed before the High Court that it advanced a loan of €785,000 to a Co Waterford woman on security of lands valued at €3.6 million when, the bank claims, the lands were “bogland” with a value of up to €100,000.
The bank made the claim yesterday when seeking an order relating to certain funds in a solicitor’s client account which it contends it is entitled to but cannot access because of an account freezing order.
Robert Beatty, for the bank, told Ms Justice Mary Laffoy the bank had advanced an €785,000 loan to Catherine O’Brien last year to facilitate the purchase of a supermarket in Dungarvan.
Counsel said 10.5 acres of land at Cloverhill, Mallow, Co Cork, was offered as security for the loan.
Mr Beatty said the bank was initially furnished with a valuation of €3.65 million for the Mallow lands but, after its own investigation, the lands – described by counsel as “bogland” – were estimated as worth between €80,000 to €100,000.
Man remanded over rape of boy
A Dublin man has been convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury of twice raping a 13-year-old boy in a container in an industrial estate 18 months ago.
After the verdict from the jury Paul Coffey SC, prosecuting, told Mr Justice Barry White yesterday that the accused had been in custody throughout the trial as he had committed another sexual assault while on bail. The 31-year-old had pleaded not guilty to two charges of raping the boy on August 18th, 2007. Mr Justice White remanded him in custody.
Psychiatrist’s decision queried
A High Court judge has said a psychiatrist had not acted appropriately in returning a man to Garda custody despite having serious concerns about his mental state following an incident where the man had allegedly driven into a shop.
Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne made the comment when dismissing a challenge by the man, brought under Article 40 of the Constitution, to the legality of his involuntary detention from February 19th last in a psychiatric hospital.
The judge said the psychiatrist, when he examined the man on February 6th, had said he had serious concerns about his mental state but believed, as the man was engaged in the criminal process, the most appropriate way to deal with him was through forensic psychiatric services within the criminal system.
While she had “no doubt whatsoever” the psychiatrist acted “from the best of motives”, that was not an appropriate way to deal with the man.