Northern Ireland

Sinn Féin member's reluctance to give statement to gardaí shows 'culture of omertà' persists

Austin Stack, whose prison officer father Brian Stack was murdered by the IRA in 1983. Picture by Brian Lawless/PA Wire
Austin Stack, whose prison officer father Brian Stack was murdered by the IRA in 1983. Picture by Brian Lawless/PA Wire Austin Stack, whose prison officer father Brian Stack was murdered by the IRA in 1983. Picture by Brian Lawless/PA Wire

THE son of murdered prison officer Brian Stack has said the revelation that a Sinn Féin member would not give a statement relating to the killing of a garda officer before speaking to the party, shows that a "culture of omertà" persists.

Austin Stack said Sinn Féin was "not a normal political party" and that it had demonstrated a "deep lack of respect for the authorities of law enforcement".

It emerged this week that a detective investigating the 2013 murder of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe in Co Louth approached Gerry Adams after a Sinn Féin member, who was a key witness in the case, would not make a statement before speaking to the party.

It is understood Mr Adams spoke to the party member after Detective Inspector Pat Marry went to the former leader for help.

Mr Adams has since said it is “nonsense” to suggest that party members need clearance to give evidence to gardaí.

The unnamed Sinn Féin member gave a statement detailing how he heard Aaron Brady confess to the murder of Detective Garda Donohoe during the robbery of Lordship Credit Union.

Mr Marry told the Irish Times that he had to go to a Sinn Féin TD for help before the witness was told by the party that there were no issues in him providing information about the killing.

Brady, a 29-year-old from Crossmaglen, Co Armagh, was convicted of capital murder at Dublin’s Central Criminal Court last week.

Speaking to The Irish News about the revelation, Mr Stack, whose prison officer father was shot by the IRA in March 1983 and died 18 months later, said the Sinn Féin member's initial refusal to give evidence about a murder highlighted the "hold the republican movement has over communities and its own members".

"That people in the organisation feel they have to go to the leadership to get permission to speak to gardaí shows Sinn Féin is not a normal political party," he said.

"No other party would allow that – can you imagine a member of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael or the Greens doing that? – it shows such a deep lack of respect for the authorities of law enforcement."

Mr Stack said the episode proved Sinn Féin had "yet to ditch its baggage".

"It shows where Sinn Féin has come from and that a culture of omertà (a code of silence) still exists within the organisation," he said.

Meanwhile, Detective Garda Donohoe's widow has told how part of her life “died” the night her husband was shot and killed.

It is the first time Caroline Donohoe, who sat through Brady's recent trial, has spoken about her husband's murder.

In an interview with the Dundalk-based newspaper the Argus, the mother of two teenagers described the court proceedings a “heartbreaking” and said some days “were really, really difficult.”

“I am still trying to pick up the pieces … People say time is a great healer but it doesn’t change the pain I feel every day. I will love him to the day I die and no one else,” she said.

Brady, who faced charges in Ireland after he was deported from the US in May 2017, showed “no remorse” during the trial.

Mrs Donohoe said. “It was very difficult to look at him,” she said.

She described her late husband as “the love of my life,” and added: “I feel as though he is with me all the time, he’s a presence in our home.”

Following his murder Mrs Donohoe, who was also in the Gardaí, did not return to work with the Garda, instead focusing on raising her two children.