Bail granted to alleged IRA members

The Special Criminal Court today granted bail to two men arrested during a garda investigation into the activities of dissident republicans.

The two men were arrested by Special Branch detectives at Edgeworthstown, Co Longford last week.

Adrian Kirwan (aged 25), a native of Ballymun in Dublin, with an address at Ardilaun Green, Ballymahon Road, Mullingar, Co Westmeath and Colum Wiggins (aged 24), a native of Belfast with an address at Derrynamasher, Annagry, Letterkenny, Co Donegal were each charged with membership of an illegal organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hEireann, otherwise the IRA on December 5.

Today Detective Superintendent Diarmuid O’Sullivan of the Special Detective Unit opposed bail and said that he believed the two men would continue to be involved in an illegal organisation if freed on bail.

The Detective Superintendent told the court that gardaí found eight electronic timing devices in a car driven by Kirwan with Wiggins as a passenger when it was stopped and searched at Edgeworthstown.

But Mr Justice Diarmuid O’Donovan, presiding, said that the two accused are entitled to the presumption of innocence and there was nothing to suggest they would not turn up for their trial if given bail.

The court granted bail to each of the two men on their own bonds of €100 each, an independent surety of €5,000 each and on the condition that each of them sign on daily at a garda station.

Both men also gave an undertaking to the court not to associate with people they know to have been convicted of subversive crime.

The court remanded the two men until February 1 next yaer.