Gardaí accused of Barron rumours

THE gardaí were partly responsible for rumours about a cattle dealer’s death that spread like wildfire around a small Donegal town, the Morris Tribunal heard yesterday.

Mark McConnell, who was arrested in connection with the death of Richie Barron in October 1996, said every local person interviewed had been asked about him and his cousin, Frank McBrearty Junior.

“People were coming back to me, telling me this. This was the reason rumours were spreading like wildfire. The guards and their informers were responsible,” he said.