Arrested priest has not yet contacted family
His brother Dan yesterday said the family was seriously concerned he might not be taking his medication. “I’m close to Neil and he has always kept in regular contact with me. It’s very worrying that he hasn’t been in touch since he was arrested on Sunday, July 9.
“He needs his medication, which keeps him from getting hyper, and we want to know if he still has access to it.”
The 59-year-old Kerryman — notorious for his publicity seeking antics — had been planning to light a candle in memory of Adolf Hitler outside the stadium where the World Cup final was being played. The stunt did not go ahead and he was arrested by German police.
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman yesterday said they were still trying to contact him, but he had not responded to communications the Berlin embassy had already sent him.
The spokesman explained that, unlike this country, when someone is detained in Germany that person must give written permission to another person to visit them.
“As soon as the embassy heard of Mr Horan’s detention, our officials wrote to him explaining the situation and including a list of English-speaking lawyers. The embassy also asked him to contact his brother Dan,” the spokesman said.
“We’ve also been in touch with the prison authorities about his medical situation and they’ve been told about his need to have access to medication,” the spokesman said. “It’s up to Mr Horan to make a move if he wants us to visit him, but he has not responded so far. He does not yet have a lawyer, as far as we know.”
The former priest had been charged with incitement of people in Germany.
“The family believes the Department of Foreign Affairs should insist on seeing him, irrespective of whether he wants this contact, or not,” Dan Horan stressed.
He said the fact that Neil had made no effort to contact the family was a major concern.
He is now considering travelling to Germany to try to expedite matters.
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