Hanging around the grim confines of the Bridewell's Court No 46 to see if two suspects in a major drugs investigation are about to be freed for the third time is probably not the most fruitful way for senior detectives to spend their time.
But from the moment Celbridge man Patrick Ralph was freed yesterday morning by Judge William Earley there was little for several officers from the national drugs unit to do but wait for the fate of two of his co-accused, Maurice O'Riordain and Christopher Burke, to be determined.
It was nearly 5 p.m. before Judge Earley ruled that "justice to Mr Burke and Mr O'Riordain" demanded that he "vacate" his earlier decision to remand them in custody.
The legal jargon employed was confusing at times, but the upshot of it all was clear: the two men were to be released again. Less than an hour after the decision a taxi was parked outside the front gates of Mountjoy Prison, waiting to collect Christopher Burke.
Neither he nor Mr O'Riordain had been in court to hear the good news. Lawyers for the men would have liked to have them there to take instructions on exactly what application they should make to the court.
But that would have involved Judge Earley issuing a "body warrant" to have the men brought from Mountjoy to the court. And as Mr Burke's solicitor, Mr Peter Mullan, pointed out at one point, he could not ask for such a warrant when it was being argued that the court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case in the first place.
It was just one confusing episode of what lawyers and gardai alike described as an unprecedented situation.
Supt Austin McNally, operational superintendent of the Garda's national drugs unit, and at least half-a-dozen of his senior officers spent the afternoon in or around the court waiting for the suspects' legal situation to be clarified.
Their investigations had effectively been stalled because under the law, as stated yesterday morning by Judge Earley, they could not attempt to rearrest any of the suspects freed earlier without new information coming to light.
As well as the three men who appeared in court yesterday, warrants had also been arrested for two others who had been released by Judge Earley on Tuesday.
But there was little point in trying to bring them in when, as one officer put it, "the only information we have today is the information we had yesterday."
The events leading to the release yesterday of three men who had been charged with possession of 300 kg of cannabis are as follows:
Thursday November 13th: 7.25 p.m. six men arrested at Pineview, Tallaght, Dublin, under Section 25 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, 1994.
Friday 14th: In the morning the six are further detained on the order of Garda Chief Supt Kevin Carty under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996, until Saturday.
Saturday 15th: The six appear before Judge Desmond Windle who grants an application for the further detention of the men for 72 hours.
Tuesday 18th: The men again appear in court before Judge William Earley. One man is granted bail. Judge Earley rules that Judge Windle was not properly empowered to have issued the detention order on Saturday. The five others are released.
Wednesday 19th: Gardai seek and are granted a warrant to rearrest the five. Three are arrested.
Thursday 20th: Three appear before Judge Earley again and are released for the second time.
