The Court of Criminal Appeal has reserved judgment on appeals by five Dublin men, described by a Garda chief superintendent as members of the Dublin brigade of the Provisional IRA, against their convictions for membership of an illegal organisation.
The three-judge court, presided over by Mr Justice Adrian Hardiman, yesterday heard closing legal submissions on behalf of the five men and for the Director of Public Prosecutions, after which Mr Justice Hardiman said the court would give judgment at a later date.
The men were each jailed for four years at the non-jury Special Criminal Court on February 21st last year for membership of Óglaigh na hÉireann, otherwise the IRA, on October 11th, 2002.
The appellants are Thomas Gilson (25), Bawnlea Avenue, Jobstown, Tallaght; Patrick Brennan (42), Lindisfarne Avenue, Clondalkin; Seán O'Donnell (33), Castle Drive, Sandymount; John Troy (26), Donard Avenue, Navan Road, and Stephen Birney (32), Conquer Hill Road, Clontarf.
After conviction, Chief Supt Peter Maguire told the Special Criminal Court that they were all members of the Provisional IRA, they were attached to that organisation's Dublin brigade and were answerable directly to its leadership.
During the 24-day trial, the court heard the men were arrested after an off-duty Special Branch detective, Det Garda Michael Masterson, noticed suspicious activity around three vehicles - a Nissan Almera car, a Nissan Micra car and a van.
The court heard gardaí recovered a large quantity of Sinn Féin posters, including election posters for Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh, from the Nissan Almera car in which they also found a stun gun, a CS gas canister, a blue flashing light and a beacon.
Gardaí also found two pick- axe handles, a lump hammer, three portable radios, cable ties, balaclavas and fake Garda jackets in the van.
Four of the men were found seated on the floor of the van and two of them, Gilson and O'Donnell, were dressed in fake Garda uniforms, the trial was told.
Chief Supt Philip Kelly, the head of the Garda Special Branch, told the trial that he believed each man was a member of an unlawful organisation.
In their appeal, the men are challenging the admissibility of that opinion evidence and they are also claiming that their arrests were unlawful.