Sinn Féin to call for independent Gort investigation

Sinn Féin’s Justice spokesperson Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD will today call in the Dáil for an independent investigation into the Garda shooting in Co Galway yesterday.

A man named locally as Mr Anthony Burke, is now said to be in a critical condition following the incident.

Deputy Ó Snodaigh argued that there “is no longer any tolerance for the practice of Gardaí investigating themselves.”

The Dublin South-Central TD said: “We recognise that it is a primary duty of the Gardaí to protect the public from harm. The Garda claim that they fired a live round, following their use of less-lethal weapons, at the man to disable him because of the threat he posed must be taken seriously.

“The credibility of the force has been undermined to the point where an internal inquiry into a shooting, no matter how justified it may be, is simply insufficient.

“I will be calling in the Dáil this afternoon for an independent inquiry into the events that took place around the shooting and leading up to it. If the Gardaí are to be accountable and their actions to be transparent, we can accept nothing less.”