Prison officer denies approaching alleged victim

The prison officer accused of breaking the jaw of a prisoner in Mountjoy

Jail denied in his direct evidence having ever approached the alleged

victim.

Mr Alan Garvey told the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court jury on day 20 of the

trial he saw the prisoner pulled from the back of a transport van and

dropped on the ground face first.

He said he was watching from about twenty feet away and did not approach the

prisoner at any time.

Mr Garvey (aged 33), c/o Mountjoy Prison, Dublin 7 has pleaded not guilty to

assault causing harm and assault causing serious harm to Mr Colm Fogarty, on

September 18, 1999 at Mountjoy Jail.

Mr Garvey said he was asked by a deputy governor to drive a van which would

be used to relocate prisoners to a secure location who had earlier been

involved in a riot. He drove the "C&R" team which moved Sean Connelly, the

cell mate of Mr Fogarty, to the medical unit.

He said after Mr Connelly was taken inside the medical unit, he got out of

the van to close the side door. He saw a red van drive up and come to a

halt near the medical unit.

He saw a prisoner being dragged by the ankles from the back of the van by an

officer in riot gear and dropped on the ground face first. Four officers in

riot gear surrounded the prisoner, one officer kneeling on his back.

The prisoner was then pulled up by the arms until he was on his knees. Mr

Garvey entered the medical unit and saw the prisoner being brought in by the

officers in riot gear and Mr Finbar Burke, who was the supervising officer.

The prisoner was taken upstairs, bent over and held in locks. Mr Garvey did

not see any blood on the prisoner or outside the medical unit.

Mr Garvey said he went upstairs inside the medical unit to use the toilet

and noticed blood stains on the floor. He assumed it was from a prisoner

but did not associate it with any one at that time.

When he was going back down, he saw Mr Burke standing at the door of a staff

room. Mr Burke said "Wait a minute" to him and Mr Garvey assumed he had

thought he wanted to enter the room.

Mr Garvey said he went out to the van and waited for the officers he had

brought over to come out so he could drive them back to the main prison.

Two days later, Mr Garvey was approached by chief Officer Connelly and told

Colm Fogarty was naming him as having assaulted him. He denied having

anything to do with his injuries.

Mr Garvey was worried about this but when he met Mr Connelly several other

times that day and he did not mention it again, he assumed he had found out

it was not true and it was all forgotten.

Mr Garvey said he escorted a prisoner who had had an overdose to the

casualty department of the Mater Hospital a few days after the incident.

While there, he was approached by another prison officer who asked him if he

was "going to come on board with the lads and give a statement".

Mr Garvey said he replied he had nothing to do with the incident. The other

officer gave him Mr Burke's phone number and asked him to ring him.

Mr Garvey rang Mr Burke and asked him why he was blaming him for the

injuries sustained by the prisoner. Mr Burke replied it was "all about

damage limitation".

Mr Garvey told prosecuting counsel Mr George Birmingham SC (with Mr Fergal

Foley BL) he had no idea why his colleagues would name him as the assailant

of Mr Fogarty.

He said there was no reason for the driver of the red van, Mr Kevin Delaney,

to name him especially since they had trained together, unless he had agreed

with Mr Burke that "6 jobs are better than 1" to save.

The trial continues before Judge Dominic Lynch.