Two Former Garda Members To Face Tribunal

It has been known for some time that former Dundalk Detective Sergeant Owen Corrigan, now a publican in nearby Drogheda, would be facing the Smithwick tribunal to answer questions that members of the Gardai colluded with paramilitaries in the fatal shootings of RUC Chief Superintendent Harry Breen and RUC Superintendent Robert Buchanan on March 20 1989, at Edenappa Road Jonesboro, just outside Dundalk, but during the week the name of retired Sergeant Leo Colton was added to the list.

Corrigan has been named in a statement made under parliamentary privilege in the House of Commons in 2000 by then Unionist MP Jeffrey Donaldson, now a member of the DUP. Mr Donaldson had claimed that Mr Corrigan had passed on information to the Provisional IRA which led to the killing of the two RUC officers, as they made their way back to Belfast after a meeting with their counterparts in the Crescent Garda Station in Dundalk.

It's probably no big surprise to many that Colton's name is now involved, since he was allowed to retire, unblemished, with full pension, despite being embroiled in a scandal, involving a young girl, which centred around the tennis club on the Ramparts.

Some years ago his name was mentioned as being the person who put pressure on ex Garda Finbar Hickey, when he was on the force, to process passport applications for persons who would not have succeeded in having their applications approved through the normal channels, a story which must seem to tie in with the current accusation.

Garda Collusion With Oriel Body Repairs

It stinks like the sewage treament plant on the Point Road in Summer.

Over the years there has been much talk (none of it good)about the apparent cosy arrangement between the Dundalk Gardai and Oriel Body Repairs, and now it's doing the rounds again because of an incident involving disabled driver's car taken from Earl Street.

The talk had begun many years ago with a certain Garda, now retired(early) and currently a bar owner in the Alicante region of Spain. Nobody cried when he left, and no big lavish parties were held in the Clan na Gaels at enormous expense. Everyone just celebrated quietly.

He would target cars belonging to girls when they parked in Park Street and have them towed away(the cars, not the girls)by his mate Finbar of Oriel. Later after a bit of extortion, the said cars would be released.

The arrangement worked famously until the wrong car was chosen on a particular day. It appears the owner, who worked in Dunnes Stores, was the daughter of a local Sergeant, and as the saying goes, the fertiliser hit the fan. Ergo end of that particular version of the scam.

About a week ago a couple, one of whom is disabled found it necessary to park in the pedestrian area in Earl Street, because the local disabled driver spot was taken (whether genuinely or not is not known)and although their car is clearly marked as a disabled persons vehicle, it was 'lifted', by Oriel on the instructions of a on duty Garda.

When they went to the Garda Station they were told that it would cost €80 cash, or if paying by cheque or credit card it would be €96.80(incl. VAT), presumably because recordable paperwork would have to be created. CAB please take note.

It makes you think of the Garda Station in Killinascully.

Kilcurry Explosives Find

A small quantity of homemade explosives was found during a search by Gardai at Kilcurry near Dundalk yesterday.

The substance was found in plastic bags stashed in a ditch, and further searches of the area are to be carried out today.

The explosives are believed to have been stashed by dissident republicans, who were probably responsible for the bomb found in August, at the very large house still under construction by Eddie Haughey, Lord Ballyedmund, at Dungooley.

Yesterday's find would appear to be part of a follow up operation to the explosive find at the Haughey house on August 15th, which contained 70lbs of ground fertiliser, with an added booster, and a command wire leading down a nearby lane.

Objection For Sale

There was intensive local, and national, media coverage recently surrounding the application for the annual renewal of the dance licence for Whispers Nite Club at the Square. The club, regretably, was the scene of a tragedy 12 months ago when an 18 year old fell to his death from a fire escape. He had gone out onto the fire escape to smoke and fell from the railing on which he had been sitting.

The mother of the young man objected to the renewal in the Dundalk District Court and Judge Flann Brennan refused the application, with the result that the club was closed, with the loss of livelihood for some people.

The owner, Bernard Conlon, successfully appealed the decision to the Circuit Court before Judge Michael O'Shea. Counsel for the appellant, explained that neither the gardai, nor the fire authorities, opposed the licence being granted, and a fire door had been added to the smoking area to make it safer.

What had not been discovered by the media, and presumably something which neither Judge was aware of, is the fact that the mother of the youth was willing to withdraw her objection to the licence in return for the sum of €125,000. That is in addition to the insurance claim already in process.

Failure To Renew Road Tax Extra Charges

Failure to renew your Road Tax can add serious financial penalties to a tax levy which has always been higher in Ireland than anywhere else in Europe.

Gardai in the Dundalk area are impounding cars caught at checkpoints with expired tax discs, but presumably those who are well outside the last expirary date.

Not alone are the impounded cars being kept at the Crescent Garda Station, but the overflow is being stores at Oriel Body Repairs in the industrial estate.

It would be safe to assume that merely presenting a current tax disc will not be enough to secure the release of one's vehicle, and that a hefty storage surcharge will apply in all cases. It is hardly possible that Oriel Repairs are providing storage free of charge.

Radio Active Liquid Fine €9.03 per Litre

Carlisle Court, in Cumbria, just over the water from the County Down, and Louth coastline, yesterday ordered the British Nuclear Group to pay almost €750,000 in fines for a radio active leak which occured 18 months ago and resulted in the shutting down of the nuclear power station for a period.

An estimated 83,000 litres of radio active liquid was released into the Irish Sea over a period of time, and the fine represents charge of €9.03 per litre.

The overall fine was described by some politicians last night as a pittance, but it also highlights the realistic danger that we live in, as a result of the proximity of that constantly malfunctioning nuclear power plant.

Oriel Wind Passing

There has been a lot of wind-passing(if you'll excuse the expression)over the past week, concerning the proposed windfarm to be sited just outside Dundalk Bay.

These guys would have you believe they intend building a thing of beauty, and one mis-guided hack in The Argus slightly lost the plot in pointing out that the irony of launching their public information campaign "under the spectacular sight of Dundalk’s first ever wind turbine at DKIT was not lost on the company’s officials."

Spectacular it may well be, but you could scarcely call it beautiful, unless you're under the influence of some mind-altering substance at the time.

Now picture 55 of these monsters within spitting distance of Shelling Hill, Whitestown, and Ballagan Shores, on the Cooley Peninsula, visible from as far away as Balbriggan to the south, and Annalong/newcastle on the County Down coast to the north, not to mention all points in between, and inland. Think of the amount of people, (including yours truly)who will have their beautiful panoramic view destroyed for their lifetime.

I do believe that Don Quixote, and his faithful sidekick Pancho, would turn it their graves...........if they had graves.

Caroline Roche of Aquafact, a Galway based impact study group employed by Oriel Windfarm, says their assessment will also cover issues such as impacts on aviation ensuring that the turbines are visible to over head aircraft.

She should be doing stand-up comedy.

They say that there will be a distance of 900 metres(nearly 1 Km)between each generator, which even by rough estimates mean that the 55 of thm will probably cover nearly 30Km's, or nearly the size of the Cooley Peninsula.

They will be visible from the International Space Station, or probably by the next guys to walk on the moon.

So alright sustainable/renewable energy has to be embraced 'big time' for the future of the planet, but you can 'take it to the bank' that these guys(the Hanniveg brothers.....yeah I know, I never heard of them either........I don't think they're from Cooley) will sell the whole circus just as soon as they have it up and running.

I would imagine they are more concerned with 'sustainable/renewable riches' than with sustainable energy, and they already admit that the power generated will not be cheaper than it is at the moment....read it will be dearer.

At least one burning question deserves an answer.

When these 55 strong collection of horrors outlive their usefullness, will whoever ownes the 'show' at that stage, be compelled to spend the necessary shekels to take them down, so that they don't become rusting hulks for centuries to come.

No!.........I didn't think so either.

Tiger Raid on Dundalk Supermarket

One of latest sytle 'Tiger Raid' robberies was carried out at Dundalk's Superquinn store on Saturday night Sunday Morning.

So named because it is known that the robbers stalk their quarry for some time in advance of their raid, and for the Dundalk store manager his ordeal began just after he had locked the premises on Saturday night and began walking the short distancce to his car.

He was approached by a slow moving vehicle, abducted and held captive until just before opening hours on Sunday morning, when he was brought back to the store when the time lock on the safe would allow it to be opened for the days business. Two female employees who arrived for work at the same time were also held and all were released when the robbers obtained a substantial amount of cash.

A partially burnt out car was later found near Dromintee in South Armagh, and early speculation suggested that dissident paramilitaries may have been responsible for the kidanpping and raid.

Seatown Castle Development Angers Residents

A proposed office development in a garden adjoining the Franciscan Friary bell tower, locally known as Seatown Castle, has angered residents of Castle Road and Mill Street, and they are determined to oppose the project.

The Franciscan Friary was established in 1244 and the Bell Tower was built in the 15th century.

The proposed site is the garden of No 1 Castle Road, the former home of the late Neil Traynor, who many will remember carried on a wholsale sweet business in the courtyard at Seatown, now occupied by the legal practice of James McGuill.

The residents feel that planning approval for the office block would render the house at No 1 useless as a private dwelling, and would signal the 'beginning of the end' for the locality as a residential area.

It is indeed hard to envisage how an office block development, within a few metres of the ancient castle, would not detract from the antiquity of one of the last remaining intact monuments in the town.

Break-ins Blamed On Drug Addiction

A dramatic rise in reported breakin-ins to property in Dundalk is being blamed by Gardai on spiraling heroin addiction, and the need for the addicts to fund their habit.

This problem didn't begin yesterday, or last week, and the blame for the rise in heroin addiction in the town, can be left at the front door of the Crescent Garda Station, just as much as on the dealers who sell the stuff.

The growing problem has been allowed to flourish for years, and the dealers might just as well have set up in shops on the main street, such has been the free hand with which they were allowed to operate........while the Gardai were busy imposing revenue earning tickets on motorists, for the benefit of the State.

Legal Beagles Barking Mad

In an unprecedented move yesterday the High Court issued an order against Dundalk based Digiweb, the internet and broadband service provider, in a determined effort to establish who is behind the website www.rateyoursolicitor.com, which up until it was removed from the web recently, gave solicitors' clients a forum in which to publish their opinion of their legal advisor.

Originally the site had been hosted by godaddy.com in Arizona until the fertilizer hit the fan a few weeks ago, when Newry born barrister Jayne Maguire, backed by about six solicitors, including local man Fergus Mullen, began a libel case in the High Court.

The discovery order against Digiweb seeks to establish the identity of the site owner, and it must be assumed that since the site was removed from the web by Arizona based godaddy.com, it had been hosted on a Digweb server.

This is the first order of it's kind against an Irish based ISP and seeks to establish the identity of their client with the email address 'lawyercatcher@lawyers .com, and the owner of the web domain names www. rateyoursolicitor.com, and www.crookedlawyers.com.

The case is adjourned to allow Digiweb comply with the order.

As one hack put it " The legal profession are a bit like 'Finnegans' Dog'. They can give it, but they can't take it."