Morris Tribunal told of death probe 'skulduggery'

A senior garda in charge of the investigation into cattle dealer Richie Barron’s death found it full of “skulduggery”, the Morris Tribunal heard today.

Supt John Fitzgerald, who was in charge of Letterkenny district between October 1996 and February 1997, said he followed all the usual procedures in the investigation.

“But it is quite obvious to me now that there were events and there were things done during the course of that investigation which I did not know about and which had a huge bearing on the results and on actions taken during the course of that,” the superintendent said.

Supt Fitzgerald said around that time there was a “culture” in Donegal towards informers.

“I am nearly 40 years in the gardaí in two months time, in all my time I never came across anything like this pure solid skulduggery that went on in the undercurrent,” he said.

As tribunal counsel, Paul McDermott SC, questioned the superintendent, he said: “I should have known and it should have been passed on to me that this William Doherty was an in-between.”

Supt Fitzgerald said he had pressed Garda John O’Dowd to reveal who was the “middle man” in bringing witness Noel McBride to the investigation.

The superintendent said he had accepted as “perfectly genuine” Mr McBride’s witness statement that placed several people in Raphoe town on the night of the death of cattle dealer, Mr Barron, in October 1996.

“I read the statement and when he said when he was there for the purpose of breaking into the technical school that was a very good reason for him to be there,” he said.

The superintendent said he had asked another garda to work on establishing the facts.

“I can only talk in hindsight but my opinion is that Garda O’Dowd and William Doherty were working on this McBride fellow. So that when Garda O’Dowd got the statement from Noel McBride, that he knew it was incorrect, Doherty obviously knew it was incorrect,” the superintendent told the tribunal.

Supt Fitzgerald said he believed that Garda O’Dowd had connived with the informer Mr Doherty and witness Mr McBride to frame the McBrearty’s for the murder of Mr Barron.

He told the tribunal he based this partly upon the number of phone calls between Garda O’Dowd and the informer Mr Doherty.

Supt Fitzgerald told the tribunal he had not enquired as to the reason behind the delay in Mr McBride coming forward.

He said Garda O’Dowd said Mr McBride was afraid of the McBrearty family and that was why he had not come forward.

The tribunal is currently investigating the module into the Barron Investigation.