Gardaí identify prison murder suspect

DETECTIVES investigating the murder of a prisoner in Mountjoy have identified a prime suspect and recovered a makeshift knife used in the killing.

Alan Greene, a 31-year-old serving a nine-month sentence for drug offences, was fatally stabbed in the B wing of the prison at midday on Tuesday and died in hospital 45 minutes later.

Gardaí discovered a blood-stained, make-shift knife and clothes believed to have been worn by the killer and are confident they have identified the inmate who stabbed Mr Greene in the chest.

The knife was found in a cistern in a toilet area. A team from the garda forensic bureau are also examining blood-stained clothes recovered from the jail.

The murdered man's father, John, who lost two other sons in tragic circumstances, said the family was devastated. "I just can't believe he was murdered in jail that is the last place where you would expect something like that to happen," he said.

As the investigation into the murder continued yesterday, talks between management and staff aimed at resolving the overtime dispute broke down.

The Prison Officers' Association will meet early next week to decide its next move. The union said it was unacceptable that management wanted officers to agree to a 46-hour week and be on standby to work additional hours unpaid, especially in emergencies.

Director of the Prison Service Sean Aylward said it was outrageous to suggest they wanted staff to work for nothing. He described as deeply misleading the suggestion that staff rejected the concept of annualised hours in their ballot last year.

Mr Aylward claimed many members told him they voted no in the hope their leadership would secure better financial terms. The main issue, according to him, was the level of compensation for change, not the principle of change itself.