The Special Criminal Court will today sentence four men for the manslaughter of Det Garda Jerry McCabe in Adare, Co Limerick.
The court heard yesterday from Mr Edward Comyn SC, prosecuting, that there was not enough evidence to establish the criminal intent necessary for a murder conviction.
The court also heard evidence about the background and previous convictions of the men and the effect of Det Garda McCabe's death on his family and colleagues. Det Insp John Kerin, who
led the murder investigation, said the family was "devastated". The court was told there was no evidence of who fired the fatal shots, and gardai did not believe Pearse McCauley had fired them.
Det Garda McCabe (52) a father of five, died in a hail of 15 bullets fired from a Kalashnikov assault rifle, after a gang of raiders rammed an unmarked Garda patrol car escorting a post office van delivering £80,000 to post offices.
The four men who pleaded guilty to manslaughter are Pearse McCauley (34), from Strabane, Co Tyrone and three Co Limerick men, Jeremiah Sheehy (38), of Abbey Park, Rathkeale, Michael O'Neill (47), and Kevin Walsh (42), both of Lisheen Park, Patrickswell.
They also pleaded guilty to maliciously wounding Det Garda Ben O'Sullivan and to having firearms with intent to commit a robbery in Adare on June 7th, 1996. A fifth man, John Quinn (31), of Faha, Patrickswell, admitted conspiring with others in June 1996 to commit a robbery at Adare.
Mr Comyn said the remaining evidence would have connected the accused with the events, and there were verbal admissions. There was also evidence "of a peripheral nature" which would not directly affect the convicted men.
He said none of the remaining evidence, or the evidence already given, would have enabled the prosecution to establish the criminal intent to establish a charge of murder and it was not possible to ascribe any particular role to any of the men in firing the gun.
Mr Comyn said the verbal admissions could have been construed as admitting involvement in the crime, but there were no admissions of firing the gun or being involved in the plan or intent to kill Det Garda McCabe. Looking at the evidence, the three counts the four men had pleaded guilty to were appropriate.
He said that from an unsigned statement made by John Quinn to gardai, he had known an armed robbery was afoot, had purchased ties and diesel and had acted as a pilot for the gang. He was "a minor but necessary player in what was a very serious crime".
He said manslaughter ranged from negligence to something short of murder and was an offence at the upper end of the scale.
Mr Justice Johnson, presiding, asked Det Insp Kerin to tell the court about the effect of the Adare shooting on Det Garda McCabe's family. He said the family was "devastated". "Jerry McCabe was one of the finest human beings and family persons one could ever meet."
The late garda's father is still alive and is deeply missing his only son. "His wife still suffers greatly and his children are very upset, and some are receiving counselling. He was a unique family man, very loved and respected by all the people," he said.
Det Insp Kerin said the death had had a profound effect on gardai and on his friends in Limerick. He said Det Garda O'Sullivan and Det Garda McCabe had been "lifelong friends, buddies". Det Garda O'Sullivan had had to watch his friend die as he tried to radio for help with his fingers, which had been shot. "They were both very important in charity work and both very loved in the community."
He said Kevin Walsh was arrested when gardai raided a house near Mullagh in Co Cavan on March 10th, 1998.
Walsh had run to a room where he had been sleeping since the Adare killing. He was carrying a loaded Makarov pistol with eight rounds of ammunition in the back of his trousers and another magazine with eight rounds in his pocket. A fully loaded AK47 rifle with 60 rounds of ammunition and with the safety lever off and in semi-automatic mode was found lying on the floor.
Altogether gardai found 136 rounds of ammunition and a large quantity of forged driving licences, balaclavas and equipment for monitoring Garda frequencies.
Det Insp Tadhg Foley, Monaghan, said Pearse McCauley was spotted driving a car in Co Cavan on May 11th, 1997. Gardai followed him but he sped off.
Later he called to the holiday home of an Englishman and asked for a lift to the Slieve Russell Hotel. In the car McCauley told the man: "I think you have a problem" and showed him a gun. McCauley told him that if the gardai caught him his friends would shoot his family in England. McCauley threatened to shoot the man and also to kneecap him, but when the man said he would take him no further, McCauley sped off in his car.
McCauley's counsel, Mr Patrick MacEntee SC, has asked the court to take into account additional charges against his client connected with the Co Cavan incident.