A woman who has sued for damages arising from her alleged unlawful arrest and three-day detention under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act in 1991 told gardaí during her detention that she could not understand why she had been arrested, the High Court has heard.
Yesterday was the sixth day of the acton against Det Insp Anthony Fennessy and the State by Mr Joe Walshe (61), a retired garda, of Dromin, Nenagh, Co Tipperary, and Ms Kay Bedford (58), of Sir Harry's Mall, Limerick.
They are claiming damages for alleged false imprisonment and slander arising from their arrest in Limerick on September 27th, 1991.
In evidence, Sgt Daniel O'Riordan, now retired, said he interviewed Ms Bedford at the Bridewell Garda station in Dublin on September 28th, 1991.
He said Ms Bedford had told him she could not understand why she had been arrested on suspicion of being a member of the Provisional IRA, as she knew absolutely nothing about the IRA.
During the interview, she had also said she lived near the Garda station in Limerick and she got a lift occasionally from Mr Walshe to Nenagh to visit a friend because Mr Walshe lived in the Nenagh area.
She had said she was a close friend of Mr Walshe's but if anybody thought their friendship was more than platonic, that person was very, very wrong.
Mr O'Riordan said he believed it was now accepted that Ms Bedford was not a member of the IRA.
The jury in the case was sent away by Mr Justice Quirke at lunchtime yesterday until next Wednesday, while legal discussion continues in their absence.