Gardaí and GSOC at odds over bugging row

Tensions between gardaí and the police ombudsman escalated last night after Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan demanded to know why gardaí were “suspected of complicity” by the watchdog in a communications attack on its offices.

It followed a statement by the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) which said there had been three security threats to its communication systems — but that there was “no evidence of garda misconduct”.

The Cabinet will be briefed this morning by Justice Minister Alan Shatter, while the three heads of GSOC are set to appear before an Oireachtas committee tomorrow.