Conor Lally recalls the day when an attempted robbery in Adare ended in a fatal shooting
Willie Jackson was driving an An Post lorry in his native Limerick on the June morning in 1996 when the IRA brought death to Adare. He saw the gang fire the hail of bullets which claimed Det Garda Jerry McCabe's life and left his partner, Det Garda Ben O'Sullivan, fighting for his.
"They didn't give them a chance, a caution or shag all," Mr Jackson said at the time.
"They started shooting into the Garda car through the windows where the two plainclothes men were in the front seat. I heard a bang and looked out to see three men wearing balaclavas and army fatigue dress jump out of the Pajero and instantly start shooting into the Garda car.
"Simultaneously, I put up my hands. I thought they were going to shoot me next. It was a real wild scene, with bullets all over the place. They didn't ask for money or look for it, but ran past the truck and got into a silver-coloured Toyota Corolla-style car and made off."
The robbery of the SDS cash van had gone wrong.
Mr Jackson knew the two detectives well. "I could see that the man in the passenger seat, Jerry McCabe, was motionless and appeared to be dead. Ben O'Sullivan, the driver, was moving."
The stricken Det Garda O'Sullivan would himself, at the 1999 trial of the men who shot him, tell the story of that dreadful morning. When he first saw the masked men he shouted to his friend and colleague: "Oh Jesus, Jerry." Two of the raiders were in front of his car. The unmarked Garda Mondeo was then rammed from behind and three more armed and masked men ran, from behind, towards the two detectives.
"They were wearing balaclavas. They carried what appeared to be Kalashnikov rifles. They had the guns pointed at us. They trained them on our car, but they were still moving, moving very energetically. In an instant, without any warning, they opened fire. It was automatic fire. The first blast struck me on the right shoulder. The second blast blew my hands off the steering wheel and I was forced on to the handbrake. The driver's window blew in around me."
He was wounded by bullets, of which 14 were fired, and by shrapnel, in the face, arms, chest and leg. But, miraculously, he lived. His colleague, with whom he had joined the Special Branch on the same day in November 1972, was lost.
"I was conscious that Jerry was in great difficulty. His hand was contorting; his arm was blue and white. When the shooting ceased, I heard shouting, but I had no idea what was being said. I called Jerry three or four times. I said: 'Jerry, Jerry, Jerry.' There was no response."
Det Garda McCabe was dead. Three bullets had entered his body.
The fatal one was fired from behind, hitting him in the back. It shattered one of his ribs, collapsed both of his lungs and severed his spinal cord before destroying the arteries around his heart.
Det Garda McCabe, originally from Ballylongford, Co Kerry, was married to Ann Caniffe, a native of Co Limerick and the daughter of a garda. The couple had five children: John (27), Mark (25), Ian (24), Stacey (17) and Ross (16).
Det Garda McCabe's murder had almost the same impact on the national psyche as did that of Veronica Guerin, which followed just 19 days later. His removal was the biggest Limerick had seen in 20 years.
There has been political and public outcry in recent years every time stories of a possible early release for the "McCabe killers", as they have become known, have surfaced.
Yesterday, after the Taoiseach's remarks in the Dáil, the Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, said that the release of the men would amount to a betrayal of the promises made to Jerry McCabe's family and the Irish people.
Ann McCabe yesterday described the decision as "disgraceful". "I could meet these fellows on the street walking down Limerick. I wouldn't like to meet them and I don't think I have anything to say to them. I have fought this all the way. I have done by best with the GRA who have been wonderful."
She has spoken a number of times about the prospect of her husband's killers being set free and is completely opposed to it.