Social media companies asked to remove 'completely inaccurate' posts about Garda's death

Garda Kevin Flatley was killed while on duty on Sunday. Picture: An Garda Síochána Waterford Facebook.

Garda HQ has appealed to certain social media companies to remove “completely inaccurate” disinformation in relation to a garda killed after being struck by a motorbike on a Dublin road last Sunday.

It comes as management coordinate the logistics for the funeral of Garda Kevin Flatley on Friday.

In one of the posts a purported motorist made particularly “distasteful” allegations about the behaviour of Garda Flatley before the fatal collision.

The traffic officer, a married father-of-two young children, was standing beside his marked garda car conducting speed checks on a 80km/h zone when he was struck by a motorbike.

The driver remains in a critical condition in hospital.

Garda investigations are underway into the circumstances leading up to the collision and officers have appealed to witnesses and anyone with dashcam footage to come forward. Gardaí are also harvesting CCTV.

A number of posts were uploaded online afterwards, including on TikTok and X, and also on WhatsApp, an encrypted platform.

The posts include a series of audio clips from a woman purporting to be a driver making disparaging claims and a video post from an identifiable man commenting on similar claims.

Garda HQ said: “An Garda Síochána is aware of content on social media platforms which purports to give an eye-witness account. The commentary being circulated online is completely inaccurate and has no basis whatsoever in fact. An Garda Síochána has made social media companies aware of this misinformation. It is a matter for them to comment on requests for this material to be removed from their platforms.”