Army private from Limerick told garda he knew people in IRA and would 'fix' him

An army private has pleaded guilty to public order offences and warning a garda after his arrest that he knew people in the IRA and would “fix him”.

Emmet Monaher, of Sarsfield Barracks in Limerick, pleaded guilty at Clonakilty District Court to two charges and said he was extremely apologetic.

The court heard that he had become drunk marking the first anniversary of one of his friends.

Sgt Paul Kelly told Judge John King that at 12.40am on October 28 last on Pearse St in Clonakilty, Co Cork, Garda Joseph Grimes was on duty and came upon two males having a verbal disagreement.

The garda attempted to defuse the situation and spoke to both men and asked them to leave the area.

Sgt Kelly said that while one of the males did so, the other, Mr Monaher, aged 28, started to shout abuse at the garda.

The court heard that Monaher then tried to follow the other male and that he was very intoxicated and stumbling on the street.

As gardaí interacted with him he told them to “fuck off” and he was arrested.

The court heard that while en route to the garda station in a patrol car, Monaher told gardaí that he had “connections with the IRA” and “he was going to fix you”.

Monaher’s solicitor, Louise Healy, said her client had been out that night and that it was the year anniversary of the death of a close friend.

She said Monaher had had too much to drink and was extremely apologetic and had apologised to gardaí the morning after his arrest.

She described her client’s actions as “a grave error of judgement” and that afterwards he sought and has undergone bereavement counselling with Pieta House.

One of the private’s army superiors was in court and Ms Healy said her client had been in the army for four-and-a-half years and was a “very diligent member of the Defence Forces” who had never been in trouble of this nature previously.

“He was grieving for his friend,” she said. “He took the wrong steps.”

As for what he said to gardaí in the car, Ms Healy said it was “a complete mistake — he didn’t mean to say any of that kind of stuff”.

She asked for the matter to be dealt with leniently and Judge King ordered a probation report on Monaher to be produced in court on May 5 next, when the matter will be concluded.

In the meantime, Monaher was released on continuing bail.