None of IRA accused were under surveillance before arrest, court told

The trial of three men from the North men charged with membership of the IRA has heard that none of the accused were under surveillance before their arrest.

Desmond Donnelly (aged 58) of Drumall, Lisnarick, Co Fermanagh, Gerard McGarrigle (aged 46) of Mount Carmel Heights, Strabane, Co Tyrone and Jim Murphy (aged 61) of Floraville, Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh have pleaded not guilty to membership of an illegal organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hÉireann, otherwise the IRA.

The Special Criminal Court heard that the three men were arrested at a garda checkpoint outside Letterkenny on February 22.

Detective Superintendant Kevin English told Ms Una Ni Raifeartaigh SC, for the State, that he requested the services of the Garda National Surveillance Unit (NSU) and the Emergency Response Unit in support of the garda investigation in to the activities of dissident republicans in Donegal.

However, Det Supt English told Ms Ni Raifeartaigh that he told both support units to “stand down” at approximately 10.30pm on the night of February 21, as intelligence and the activities of local gardaí indicated they were no longer required.

He told the court that, after consulting other senior investigative officers, he decided to end phase one of the garda operation – the arrest and interrogation of suspects – and begin phase two: the disruption and prevention of illegal activities.

Det Supt English said he was “100% satisfied” that the NSU made no sighting of the accused men or the vehicle they were travelling in before their detention at the checkpoint outside Letterkenny.

Det Supt English told Mr Diarmuid McGuinness SC, counsel for McGarrigle, that he was claiming privilege on the contents of a garda operational document which details the names of suspected IRA members and vehicles associated with them.

Although the operational document has been made available to the defence in severely redacted form, Det Supt and said that disclosing the list of names in full would endanger the life of a garda informant.

Asked by Mr McGuinness as to how a list of suspects could endanger the life of an informant, Det Supt English replied: “It is certainly not unheard of for one terrorist to shoot a fellow terrorist.”

The trial continues in front of the three-judge court on Tuesday.