Sinn Féin TD sues 'Sunday World'

Dublin Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh has initiated defamation proceedings against the Sunday World over an article which, he claims, wrongly accused him of failing to report a serious crime to gardaí.

The case arises from an article in the newspaper, published on January 9th last under the headline “Aengus Turns Blind Eye To Car-Jacking”, which referred to the theft of Mr Ó Snodaigh’s car from outside his Dublin home on the night/early morning of December 28th last. The car was later found burned out.

The article stated Mr Ó Snodaigh, Sinn Féin’s Justice spokesman, failed to report the theft but he says that claim was wrong and he had reported the matter to gardaí.

Ross Maguire SC, for Mr Ó Snodaigh, said his client was Sinn Féin’s Justice spokesman and a member of the Dublin City Joint Policing Committee, a think tank involved in analysing crime trends and formulation of policy on crime prevention.

On December 28th last, Mr Ó Snodaigh’s car was stolen from outside his home and burned out and the TD reported this fully to gardaí the next morning when he came aware of it, counsel said. Gardaí informed him the matter was already reported by a local resident.

However, the Sunday World, last Sunday, published an article headlined “Aengus Turns Blind Eye To Car Jacking” and under a strap-headline across two pages stating “We know Ireland Sunday World We Know Crime”.

The article featured a photo of Mr Ó Snodaigh with a caption “no complaint” while articles on the opposite page related to Limerick criminals and another man alleged to be a “notorious crime lord”.

Mr Maguire said his side had issued defamation proceedings and had written to the Sunday World asking it to remove the article from the website and not repeat the falsehoods in future editions of the newspaper. The Sunday World had not responded to date.

The President of the High Court, Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, said short notice of the injunction application could be served on the newspaper and he returned the matter to Monday afternoon.

In an affidavit, Mr Ó Snodaigh said he and his family were asleep when his car was stolen and he discovered the theft the next morning when he immediately went to Kilmainham Garda Station and reported it.

The Garda on duty informed him the theft was reported earlier by a local resident and advised him to go to Ballyfermot garda station as the car had been found burned out in the Cherryorchard area.

He then went to Ballyfermot station where gardai told him they had engaged a towing company to remove the car which was damaged beyond repair and being taken away for technical examination.

Mr Ó Snodaigh also said he informed his insurance company of the theft and destruction of the vehicle and had been kept fully informed by gardai of their enquiries into the matter.

He said the article complained of featured on a double page spread in the Sunday World and featured his photo prominently. He believed and was advised the photo and layout with the headline were defamatory of him and the article falsely claimed he had not reported the theft and quoted an anonymous source saying: “we don’t known why he has not made a complaint”.

He believed the newspaper had no defence to his claims. The article had already caused substantial damage to his reputation and he had received “significant reaction” from the general public, “much of it of a hostile nature”, including on the website www.politics.ie.

The allegation of failure to report a serious crime constituted an allegation of egregious breach of obligation and duty on his part, opened him to a charge of gross hypocrisy undermining his position as a TD and member of the Joint Policing Committee and was all the more damaging in a general election campaign, he said.