A round-up of other home news in brief
Man arrested over killing of British soldiers
A 19-year-old man has been arrested and questioned in connection with last month’s dissident republican murders of two British soldiers in Co Antrim. He was taken in by the PSNI in Bellaghy, Co Derry.
Army engineers Mark Quinsey (23) and Patrick Azimkar (21) were shot at the gates of Massereene Barracks, Antrim, on March 7th as they collected a pizza delivery. Four others, including two pizza delivery men were shot and injured.
Ex-prisoner sues State over attack
A former prisoner who claims he was slashed with a Stanley-type knife across the face, back and abdomen by an inmate in Wheatfield Prison has sued the State for damages in the High Court.
The action has been brought by Peter Creighton (30), Murphy Lawn, Clondalkin, Co Dublin, who was serving a four-year sentence at the time of the incident. He was released in 2006 and is employed.
Opening the case yesterday, Patrick Keane SC, argued there was an onus on the prison authorities to take reasonable precaution for the safety of his client.
Mr Creighton said he was sitting on a bench in a prison room with about 20 other prisoners on January 19th, 2003, waiting for methadone treatment when he was slit from his nose to behind the ear. As a result of the attack, he also had scars on his stomach and back and received a nick on the throat.
The hearing continues today.
New Workers’ Party candidate
The Workers’ Party is to field a new candidate, Malachy Steenson, in the forthcoming Dublin Central byelection on June 5th.
Mr Steenson will “give workers the kind of voice in the Dáil that Tomás MacGiolla gave them in the past”, according to the party’s president Michael Finnegan. He is calling for an end to tax-exile status and an immediate programme of house building to clear waiting lists for social housing.
Anti-drugs phone line for Limerick
An anti-drugs phone line that allows people to anonymously report drug dealing has been extended to Limerick.
The confidential “Dial to Stop Drug Dealing” line operates in Dublin, Kildare, Cork and Kerry. Callers are not asked to provide identifying details about themselves, and although information supplied is passed on to gardaí, the phone service is not directly operated by An Garda Síochana. Dial to Stop Drug Dealing can be contacted on 1800-220220
Postmortem on body found in Clare
A postmortem will take place today on the body of a man recovered from a lake in Co Clare early yesterday. The man in his 50s was reported missing on Wednesday night when he failed to return to his home in Ruan, Co Clare.
Gardaí say that they do not suspect foul play.
Gardaí seek to identify dead man
Gardaí in Cork have launched an appeal in a bid to identify a man who sustained critical injuries after he jumped from the third floor of a burning building yesterday. Known only as “Kevin”, he is 35 years old and was the lone occupant of a top floor apartment at 13 North Mall .
Two handguns found in Tallaght
Two handguns were found in Tallaght, Dublin yesterday evening. The weapons were spotted by Fire Brigade personnel attending a blaze on grasslands near the National Basketball Arena in Tymon Park at about 6pm.
The scene was preserved by gardaí, who took possession of the weapons which will be sent for technical examination.