Two men to appear in court charged in connection with the escape of a prisoner

Two men are to appear in court this morning charged in connection with the escape of a male prisoner from Tallaght Hospital.

The 32-year-old and 58-year-old were arrested in this morning in the Co Meath area.

The men are due before Tallaght and Navan District Court.

The escape occurred on February 17.

Prison officers were escorting a prisoner named Derek Brockwell, aged 53, to Tallaght Hospital for treatment when an incident occurred and he escaped.

Derek Brockwell’s dramatic escape unfolded on February 17 last after he was escorted to Tallaght Hospital from Portlaoise Prison where he was serving a seven year sentence for a string of armed robberies across Dublin.

Two of the three unarmed prison officers were stabbed and he made his escape on the back of a waiting motorbike.

The Scot’s new-found freedom was short lived though. The following evening, he was tasered by the PSNI after being identified outside a pub in Belfast.

Two men were arrested this morning and one of them, 58-year-old James Donohue, appeared before Tallaght District Court charged with aiding and abetting a prisoner to escape custody. The other is due before Navan District Court.

The DPP has directed trial before judge and jury for Mr. Donohue. There was no objection to bail and he left court this afternoon after being told to come back in six weeks time for service of a book of evidence.