Gardaí can summons all alleged squatters at council office

If gardaí have to bring before the High Court more people than just the “ringleaders” of an alleged illegal occupation of council offices then “so be it”, a judge has said.

Mr Justice Tony O’Connor said he was not directing how gardaí should conduct any operation to remove a group of people from the Kube building in Letterkenny, Co Donegal.

However, he said, the court was “very exercised” by the idea a number of people could just “hijack a property” in defiance of court orders.

The occupation has continued since November 18th when about 20 people stormed the building and told council staff, housed on the second floor, to leave before changing the locks.

Among them was local businessman Brendan Gildea, who had leased out the building before it was taken over by a receiver appointed by Danske Bank which was owed millions by Mr Gildea's company.

Mr Gildea, it is alleged, demanded the council sign a new lease with him before the occupation would end.

The receiver got High Court orders against Mr Gildea and Noel Devine directing them to leave immediately. The orders also applied to anyone else with knowledge of them.

The Garda Commissioner or a representative was asked by Mr Justice O’Connor to attend court on Friday to explain the difficulties of removing the group after expressing concern the rule of law and the authority of the court was being undermined.

Anthony McBride, for the commissioner, said gardaí were willing to assist but counsel was advised it would be “more effective” if there was a limited order against “named individuals who may be described as ringleaders”.

The judge said Mr Gildea had not seen fit to attend court or to put forward any legal authority for what he was doing.

‘So be it’

In relation to concerns that an order applying to all in occupation meant “a number of people are going to be brought here, so be it,” the judge said.

It may be there will be a “rolling situation” and neither the receiver nor the court were in a position to identify the ringleaders, he said.

The court was “very exercised” by the idea a number of people could just “hijack a property” in defiance of court orders, including a similar one which applied to Mr Gildea as far back as 2013, he added.

He was not directing gardaí and he recognised the separation of powers between the different arms of the State, but “if there were going to be criminal proceedings, I am not going to be involved in that”.

The judge asked the commissioner to provide further evidence on Monday about the claim gardaí could not locate Mr Devine to bring him before the court for alleged contempt because he was outside the jurisdiction.

Earlier, the judge said he was not pre-judging whether there had been contempt of the court order but all the evidence pointed that way.

He did not agree with Mr McBride that specific applications should be brought by the receiver so the gardaí could act on them. The rules of court were not there to be subverted by people who were communicating with the group and the court had seen certain Facebook posts.

“We are now living in a era where somebody is active posting matters trying to undermine the power of the court, justice and the State.”