A garda broke down in tears at the tribunal yesterday as he apologised to two women for the treatment he inflicted on them during an interrogation in 1996.
Det Garda John Dooley who changed his evidence in a statement to admit that Katrina Brolly and Róisín McConnell had been mistreated, said in the witness box: "I'd like to sincerely apologise to Mrs Brolly. Mrs Brolly and Mrs McConnell . . ."
He then stopped and broke down in tears, wiping his eyes with a handkerchief.
After a few moments he resumed: "I'd like to sincerely apologise to Mrs Brolly and Mrs McConnell for the treatment I inflicted on them while they were in custody at Letterkenny Garda station."
He continued, although he struggled as his voice shook with emotion: "I regret that I hadn't more courage to tell the truth from the outset." Det Garda Dooley again wiped his eyes. He said he was just recovering from a bout of depression.
He had made false statements denying that the interviewees in the Garda investigation into the death of cattle-dealer Ritchie Barron had been mistreated.
Last October, he made a tribunal statement admitting their allegations were correct. Det Sgt John White, who was present at the interviews, has also changed his evidence and admitted he mistreated the suspects.
Det Garda Dooley became emotional yesterday when talking about the effects on him and his family when his admission was made public last week. He said he had had great support from colleagues, ringing him and telling him he was doing the right thing.
"My family who are now aged between 25 and 18 years of age - and they were out and and about and I live in Glenties which is a small town in west Donegal, and most people have said positive things to them and I've had visitors to the house and they've been talking to me at Mass and saying I'm doing the right thing - excuse me . . ."
Det Garda Dooley stopped as he broke down again, wiping away tears. He agreed it was correct that a chair was thrown by Det Sgt White, foul language was used by them and postmortem photographs of Mr Barron shown, that Mrs McConnell was called a "lying murderous bitch", told her son would end up in care and she was asked to swear on her mother's grave while he and Det Sgt White did some sort of praying.
He said Mrs Brolly's allegations of being shown the postmortem photographs were correct. He turned the lights out in the room and street lights were shining in. He told her to stand up in the middle of the room and he got the photos and showed them one by one and held them about six inches from her face. It had upset Mrs Brolly.
"They were gruesome photographs," he said.
He threatened to have her children taken off her. He also asked her if she had been bribed by Frank McBrearty and used crude language.
Det Garda Dooley was asked about an allegation made by Mrs Brolly that he also made in his new statement that Garda Joan Gallagher had pulled her hair during the interview. Det Sgt White in his new statement said he did not recollect it, but had no reason to doubt Det Garda Dooley's word on it. Garda Gallagher has denied she ever pulled Mrs Brolly's hair.
Det Garda Dooley said Garda Gallagher came round and pulled Mrs Brolly's hair twice "with a strong tug" and called her a lying bitch. Mrs Brolly said she had not come there to have her hair pulled.
Mrs Brolly was held for 12 hours overnight. Asked if the treatment could be described as brutal and inhumane, he said it was, it was terrible.
Det Garda Dooley said Garda Gallagher worked doing clerical work in the Garda liaison office between the commissioner and the tribunal. At one stage he had gone to her to help draft a false statement. He said Garda Gallagher did not know it was fraudulent and was no way party to it, but he did not complete it.
Earlier, Mrs Brolly told Det Sgt White's solicitor, Paud Dorrian, she would not accept his apology.