A former Irish soldier who had also been a member of the Provisional IRA and the INLA was yesterday jailed for five years for the unlawful possession of a firearm on the night an INLA man was shot dead.
Richard Tobin (49), a native of Co Down, with an address at Somerville Drive, Crumlin, Dublin, pleaded guilty at the Special Criminal Court to the unlawful possession of a semi-automatic rifle with intent to endanger life at Upper Clanbrassil Street, Dublin, on July 22nd, 1994. Tobin had pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr John Bolger (31) on the same date. The State entered a nolle prosequi on the murder charge.
The accused had been arrested two days after the shooting but then moved to England. He was extradited in December 1999 and has been in custody in Portlaoise since then.
The court heard that the deceased and a friend, Mr Michael Kenny, had been involved in a dispute with the accused and another man outside the Glimmerman pub early on July 22nd. Mr Bolger was in Mr Kenny's car when the car "was shot at". Mr Bolger was shot and died shortly afterwards.
Det Sgt Walter Kilcullen said the accused made certain admissions while detained at Kevin Street Garda station on July 24th, 1994. Initially, he told garda∅: "It was him or me - I had to do it." He subsequently retracted and said: "All I'm saying now is that I was there and I had a gun."
Sentencing him to five years, backdated to 1999, Mr Justice Richard Johnson said the court had to take account of the severity of the offence to which Tobin pleaded guilty.