Allegation of naval information leak
A major investigation has been carried out into the matter – one of the first such cases to hit the Defence Forces – and a detailed file is being examined by the Director of Military Prosecutions.
Defence Minister Willie O’Dea said military authorities had advised him that a “comprehensive investigation” into the allegation had been completed.
In response to a parliamentary question, he said: “A report on the matter has recently been forwarded to the Director of Military Prosecutions who will determine what action, if any, is required under the Defence Act. The Military Authorities have further advised that the individual in question, as is standard practice in such instances, has been redeployed elsewhere within the Naval Service.”
Mr O’Dea said it would be inappropriate to comment on the case any further.
The allegations are understood to centre around the provision of information on the general movements of naval vessels to smugglers. Some security sources have indicated that the individual may not have been in a senior enough position to give exact detailed patrol movements of the eight naval vessels.
The Defence Forces have previously said that the allegations emerged during “regularly conducted security checks” conducted by Naval Command.
The Defence Forces said this revealed that information was being “allegedly disclosed without authority by a member of the Naval Service to civilian persons”.
A spokesman for the Defence Forces yesterday declined to comment any further saying the matter was now sub judice.
Labour party defence spokesman Brian O’Shea described the situation as “a very serious matter”, but stressed it was highly unusual for the Defence Forces.
“It is appalling that a member of the Defence Forces is suspected of acting in this way, but I want to underline that this is a very rare occurrence,” said Mr O’Shea.
“These are still allegations, but if this person is guilty, it needs to be clearly demonstrated that this is totally unacceptable.”
In an answer to a related question, Mr O’Dea said the number of patrol days by the Naval Service had fallen to 1,480 this year, compared to 1,588 in 2009 and 1,658 in 2008.
Deputy O’Shea said the “quality, rather than the quantity” of patrols was of more importance. He pointed out that international and national operations against drug trafficking, which typically involve the Gardaí and Customs, were based on intelligence.
