TWO SENIOR RUC officers were told not to travel across the Border days before they were murdered in an IRA ambush in 1989, the Smithwick Tribunal was told on the opening day of its public hearings yesterday.
A former assistant chief constable, identified as Witness 18, who was granted anonymity and gave evidence from behind a screen, told the tribunal that he had told Chief Supt Harry Breen and Supt Bob Buchanan at a meeting in Armagh on March 16th, 1989 they were not to cross the Border in investigating smuggling in the area.
The tribunal, chaired by former president of the District Court Peter Smithwick, was set up six years ago to investigate allegations that gardaí or other representatives of the State colluded in the IRA ambush Chief Supt Breen and Supt Buchanan on March 20th 1989.
The incident happened near the Border village of Jonesborough as both men returned from a meeting earlier that day with senior gardaí in Dundalk.
Witness 18 said he had had a meeting earlier that day in Belfast after which the chief constable, Jack Hermon, said he should look into smuggling in south Armagh.
He was told to contact Chief Supt Breen and ask him to look into the activities of a particular individual.
He said he was quite clear the chief constable had regarded this as quite a “low level” operation, and had said it was not necessary to cross the Border.
Later that day, at about 5pm, he had a meeting in Armagh with the two officers and their staff officers and he told both men to get the co-operation of An Garda Síochána but not to go across the Border. He said there was a secure telephone line to the gardaí.
Justin Dillon, for the tribunal, said Chief Supt Breens journal indicated he was on leave that day and his widow had said he mowed the lawn in the morning and they went shopping in the afternoon. Witness 18 insisted Mr Breen had been present at the meeting.
He also said he was concerned in general about Supt Buchanan going back and forth across the Border. It was revealed in the report on the matter by Canadian judge Peter Cory, that he did so about 10 times a month.
Pressed on his instruction, he said: “A direction was given. I gave the direction. The chief constable told me there was no necessity to cross the Border. There was always a risk around the Border.”
Asked about the effect of the murder on him he said: “I told them not to go and they went.”
Earlier a sergeant, the staff officer who worked with Supt Buchanan, who was known as Witness 6 and also gave evidence from behind a screen, said that there were rumours at the time of an IRA mole in Dundalk Garda station. However, he did not recall any talk about it prior to 1989.
He said that the assistant chief constable appeared to have concerns at the meeting on March 16th about the officers crossing the Border.
Pressed as to whether Chief Supt Breen had been at that meeting, in the light of his journal and his wife stating he was on leave, he said: “That is my recollection. It seems I was wrong.” He said another sergeant, Chief Supt Breens staff officer, had expressed the view that Chief Supt Breen was not content about going across the Border.
He also said he was “amazed” when he learned Supt Buchanan crossed the Border about 10 times a month.
He told Eamonn Coffey, counsel for Leo Colton, one of the gardaí identified in a 2000 investigation into allegations of collusion, that there was no official memo from the meeting of March 16th, which was “a very informal chat”.
He agreed the IRA in south Armagh were a very effective organisation and would have spent a lot of time gathering intelligence on the movements of RUC officers. He also acknowledged that Supt Buchanan would have been well known to the IRA in the area.
Asked by Mr Dillon if Chief Supt Breen had crossed the Border under pressure from the assistant chief constable, he said he was not aware of it.
The tribunal resumes today.