An army private told gardai he paid a Northern Ireland man known as "Sniper Joe" £1,500 to carry out a "punishment-style beating" on a Co Sligo community activist, Mr Terry Madden, a murder trial at the Special Criminal Court has been told.
Det Garda Dominic Hunt, of Cavan, told the court the private, Mr Michael Doohan, told him the attack on Mr Madden was "only to be a whacking".
Mr Doohan said he paid Mr Michael Joseph (Joey) Herron £600 in advance and the balance of £900 three days after Mr Madden was shot dead outside his home at Monasteraden. He said when he asked Mr Herron why he had shot Mr Madden a second time, Mr Herron replied: "He got smart." Det Garda Hunt was giving evidence on the second day of the trial of three men who deny the murder of Mr Madden (52), a father of three, at his home on January 28th last year. The three are Mr Herron (31), single and from Belleek, Co Fermanagh, with an address at Chapel Street, Ballyshannon, Co Donegal; Mr Doohan (34), single and a member of the Defence Forces, of Ashbury Lawn, Ballinode, Co Sligo; and Mr Patrick McGrath (57), a married father of 12, of Cuilprughlish, Gurteen, Co Sligo.
Mr Herron also denies possession of a shotgun with intent to endanger life on January 28th last year. Mr Doohan and Mr McGrath also deny intentionally causing serious harm to Mr Madden at Monasteraden on the same date and Mr McGrath denies possession of a sawn-off shotgun with intent to enable another person to endanger life.
The court has heard that Mr Madden bled to death after he was shot in the back of both legs outside his home. The prosecution has claimed Mr Herron was the gunman. Det Garda Hunt said he and Det Garda Richard Caplice interviewed Mr Doohan on February 14th last year. Mr Doohan told gardai there had been "great difficulties" between his family and the Maddens for 17 years and that Mr Madden "had to be paid back. I hated the man for his treatment of my parents and neighbours and people in the surrounding area," he said.
Mr Doohan said Mr Madden had planted trees which obstructed his family's bed and breakfast's view of Lough Gara and had also arranged to have the family B&B taken off the tourist board's computer. He told gardai he was introduced to a man known as "Sniper Joe", who was Mr Joey Herron. He told Mr Herron he wanted a job done on Mr Madden. "It was to be a punishment-style beating. I agreed to pay him £1,500." Mr Doohan said he paid Mr Herron £600 in two instalments during meetings at Bundoran. Three days later, he met Mr Herron, who told him he had told Mr Madden to get on his belly and when he was lying on the ground he turned and said to him: "You will go down for this."
When Mr Doohan said it was supposed to be a punishment beating, Mr Herron said it was quicker with a shotgun. "I am sorry that it all went wrong. It was never meant to happen the way that it did," he said. Det Garda Hunt said when Mr Doohan met Mr Herron in Manorhamilton Garda station he said to him: "Come clean, Joey, tell everything. It wasn't meant to work out that way." The trial continues today.