MINISTER FOR Justice Dermot Ahern is planning tough new measures for gangland criminals, including trials at the non-jury Special Criminal Court for those charged with a new offence of membership of a crime gang.
Evidence gathered via new covert bugging operations along with the sworn testimony of senior Garda officers would form the cornerstone of gangland prosecutions at the Special Criminal Court, which has rarely been used for non-terrorist trials.
The new covert bugging legislation will be published today and will allow gardaí to use concealed audio and visual devices to secretly record criminals suspected of any arrestable offence.
The new bugging powers under the Criminal Justice Surveillance Bill will extend, not only to gardaí, but also to members of the Defence Forces and Revenue officials, The Irish Times has learned.
Mr Ahern yesterday briefed Taoiseach Brian Cowen on his wide-ranging gangland proposals and also met Attorney General Paul Gallagher earlier this week to brief him on what is planned.
The new gangland measures are the result of talks Mr Ahern and his senior officials have held with Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy and other senior officers since the murder of Roy Collins (35) in Limerick city last week.
Sources close to Mr Ahern said he believed a number of criminal gangs were now “putting it up to the State” in a manner not seen since the murder of Veronica Guerin.
The measures relating to the use of the Special Criminal Court for gangland crime – and other proposals – will be modelled on legislation used to target the Provisional IRA and dissident republicans.
It is proposed that the extended detention without charge of suspects be streamlined and that penalties for intimidating witnesses and jurors be increased from seven years to life imprisonment.
The proposed measures are aimed at strengthening the hand of gardaí facing what sources described as “the new challenge” posed by gangs following the murder of Mr Collins.
The father of two was shot dead in his family’s casino arcade at Roxboro Shopping Centre. A man has been charged with his murder.
Under the proposed new legislation, a new offence of membership of a crime gang will be created. The offence will be a scheduled one, meaning those charged will automatically appear before the Special Criminal Court unless the DPP directs otherwise.
It is already an offence to “participate in” a crime gang. The measure was introduced in 2006 but is regarded as too complex to prosecute.
Under the new offence, the Special Criminal Court will be able to draw inferences from an accused’s unexplained wealth, his association with other criminals and his refusal to answer Garda questions, as well as the covert surveillance evidence and Garda testimony.
Another new offence of directing a gang is also planned. “Post-release” conditions for those convicted of gang involvement are also being formulated. They include exclusion from certain areas and a ban on associating with named criminals.
Existing legislation that allows suspects for gun and drug crime be detained for seven days without charge is to be streamlined.
Mr Ahern wants suspects and their legal representatives to be excluded from court hearings when gardaí apply for extensions to periods of detention. He believes lawyers and suspects are using the hearings to assess the strength of the Garda’s case and are gaining an advantage.
It is intended that the planned gangland measures will be included in the Criminal Justice Amendment Bill 2009. It is currently being drafted with a view to fast-track enactment before the Dáil’s summer break.
Meanwhile, under the surveillance Bill to be published today, Garda and Defence Forces members and Revenue officials can forcibly enter a premises in secret and, with court approval, plant bugging devices for three months.
For the first time, the recorded material can then be presented in court as evidence.