Sergeant deliberately misled gardaí, court hears
Sergeant Cathal Cryan was investigating the brutal killing of Grace Livingstone, shot dead at her Malahide home on December 7, 1992.
A statement by the sergeant was used to decide on the subsequent arrest of the murdered woman’s husband, James Livingstone, for the possession of unlicensed firearms.
But the legal team for Mr Livingstone yesterday said it was “impossible to interpret the justification” for the issuing of the warrant to search the then-tax inspector’s home and his arrest.
John Rogers SC said gardaí had known about all the guns at 37 the Moorings, Malahide, for months before it was decided to arrest Mr Livingstone. The weapons were listed in statements and gardaí had also identified them at the home.
The arrest of Mr Livingstone — who is suing the State for false imprisonment and slander — on March 3, 1993, was unjustified, the court heard.
Sgt Cryan in a statement had said he was not aware of the full “extent” of Mr Livingstone’s firearms until after the murder investigation began.
Mr Livingston was “less than co-operative” and had “an attitude problem”, the sergeant had reported.
This statement had underlined Mr Livingstone’s arrest, claimed Mr Rogers, an arrest that was “completely unwarranted” because of what gardaí knew.
No weapon had been concealed and his client had been arrested over three months after the Malahide home had been searched, the court was told.
Mr Rogers claimed Sgt Cryan had put matters in his statement which “misled someone reading it” and given the language, it was “deliberate”, he alleged.
The statement was used by an inspector to later advise the DPP on charging James Livingston over the possession of unlicensed firearms, said the barrister.
The court earlier heard how Mr Livingstone had on January 14 arrived at Malahide Garda Station with personal tax details of three gardaí, including Sgt Cryan. This action by the tax inspector was a “threat” to “discourage him from a particular line of inquiry”, Sgt Cryan had reported.
The court also heard how Mr Livingstone had been accused a number of years earlier of threatening a Revenue colleague with a revolver.
None of these factors had justified his arrest though, Judge John McMenamin was told. Furthermore, when he was questioned, gardaí had only been interested in who murdered his wife, the judge was told.
The court heard from a number of witnesses regarding the day of Grace Livingstone’s murder.
Next door neighbour Anne Egan said on the evening of the murder, she had heard a “very loud booming noise” at 4.20pm. But she was not interviewed by gardaí until a week after the killing. Neighbour Ena Brennan thought she had also heard a loud noise while cooking. Her daughter had also seen a tall strange man with a long coat walking in the area, before and after the killing.
Fireman Eamon Burke said he had arrived at the murder scene at around 6.20pm. He had felt it a bit odd though that Mr Livingstone offered him tea or mince pies when his wife was dead on the bed.
The case continues next Tuesday.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
