A Garda Chief Superintendent told the Special Criminal Court yesterday that original documents relating to the trial of three men accused of Real IRA membership had been "mislaid."
Chief Supt Colm Rooney said that he had put the documents in the door pocket of his car after photocopying them and bringing the photocopies to the home of Supt Thomas Flannery. He said that he had been unable to find them after carrying out searches.
The Chief Supt agreed with Ms Ivana Bacik BL, counsel for one of the accused Mr Aidan Grew, that the documents had been "mislaid or lost in the course of the trial." He was giving evidence on the 18th day of the trial of three men who have pleaded not guilty to membership of an illegal organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hÉireann, otherwise the IRA on November 8th, 2002.
They are Mr Cathal Loughran (27), of Friary Road, Clady, Co Armagh, Mr Dominic Dynes(32), of St Matthew's Estate, Keady, Co Armagh and Mr Aidan Grew(47), of Benburb St, Blackwatertown, Co Armagh. A fourth man arrested with the accused, Mr Garreth O'Connor(24), of Bawnbrook Hill, Armagh is the subject of a murder investigation and went missing last year while on bail.
The defence counsel applied to the court to direct a mistrial on the grounds that because of the lost notes they were not in a position to test the credibility of Chief Supt Rooney. The court will rule on the defence application today.