Morris finds gardaí mistreated Barron suspects

A number of gardaí mistreated several people who were detained unlawfully during the investigation into the death of Co Donegal cattle-dealer Richard Barron, the Morris tribunal has concluded.

The sixth report from the tribunal, which was published this afternoon, deals with the Garda investigation into the discovery of Mr Barron's body on the roadway outside Raphoe, Co Donegal, in the early hours of Monday October 14th, 1996.

It also covers the subsequent arrest and detention of Frank McBrearty Jnr and others for the murder of Mr Barron.

The tribunal strongly condemned instances of mistreatment by a number of gardaí in Donegal during the investigation and said it did not accept the evidence of several members of the force.

The report found that a number of people were unlawfully arrested and detained, and that some were mistreated in custody, mainly through verbal and in some cases, physical abuse.

Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy has expressed “profound regret” at the findings and has apologised to those who were found to have been mistreated. Mr Murphy said it was “deeply disappointing” that the tribunal found that some members of the Garda were “less than forthright in their dealings with the tribunal.”

“This report together with previous reports from the Morris tribunal, have identified significant failings which An Garda Síochána is addressing," he said in a statement.

Frank McBrearty Snr and Frank McBrearty Jnr arriving at the Morris Tribunal

The report also deals with the investigation by the tribunal into a claim that conversations between solicitors and those detained in Letterkenny Garda station were secretly recorded by members of the Garda. The report concludes that this allegation is false.

"False evidence was manipulated by members of An Garda Síochána in an effort to implicate suspects whom the gardaí believed were responsible for the late Richard Barron’s death. Proper methods of investigation were not employed," the report states.

"Statements were not properly taken from witnesses. Rumour as to who might be responsible for the late Mr Barron’s death was taken to be true from the moment of its reception by An Garda Síochána. The officers in the investigation became driven by their own conviction that Mr Frank McBrearty Jnr and Mr Mark McConnell were guilty of the killing of the late Richard Barron," the report added.

"The tribunal was faced with gardaí who were determined to hide the truth of what happened. They made statements to their superiors which were in many instances minimalist in their detail and failed to give a fully truthful account; in a number of instances the statements were a complete fabrication. It was disturbing to find a deep-seated reluctance to concede that a colleague had acted incorrectly or wrongfully or that the complaints made by the detainees were true – the wall of silence was maintained".

The tribunal report said that there was a "large conflict" between Frank McBreaty Jnr and the gardaí witnesses over the events which are alleged to have occurred during his first period of detention on the 4th of December 1996."

Mr McBrearty Jnr, who was awarded a compensation payout of €1.5 million and an apology from the Government in 2005, was criticised in the report for his lack of co-operation with the tribunal.

The tribunal said it was satisfied that McBrearty Jnr had "exaggerated the level and scale of the abuse he exeprienced at the hands of the gardaí".

It added that it was difficult for the tribunal to determine what actually happened in the interview room but added that it was "struck" by the fact that the statement which was ultimately made by McBrearty Jnr "bore a striking resemblance" to the general Garda theory.

Nonetheless, the tribunal said that it believed that the false confession made by the accused wasn't obtained by trickery.

"I am satisfied that on the balance of probabilities his will crumbled during the course of the day, such that he was prepared to make a false confession along the lines of the prevalent Garda theory during the first of the evening interviews," said Mr Justice Frederick Morris.

Separately, the tribunal concluded that Frank McBrearty Snr,"greatly exaggerated some events and told untruths in respect of others," when giving evidence on his arrest and detention.

"it was wrong and disgraceful on his part to make false allegations from time to time in respect of members of An Garda Síochána who dealt with him at that time. The fact that wrongs were committed against Mr McBrearty Senior does not give him a licence to unfairly and wrongly accuse other Gardaí of transgressions."

Minister for Justice Brian Lenihan said the behaviour of certain gardaí had “no place in a disciplined police service”.

"The disgraceful behaviour of a small number of gardaí in Donegal during a period in the 1990s should not be allowed to overshadow the dedication to the State and to public service shown by the vast majority of members down through the years," he said.

The tribunal report makes a number of recommendations arising from its findings, most of which are centred on improvements on interviewing people in Garda custody.

The Morris tribunal has heard a total of 686 days of evidence since it was established by the Oireachtas in 2002 following allegations and complaints concerning members of the Garda in Donegal.