Mr Danny Butler, the Belfast man deported from New Zealand after a day-long siege at his home in Auckland on Monday, arrived at Dublin Airport last night and declared that it was "good to see Irish faces again".
Mr Butler, who entered the airport arrivals area with his 16-yearold son, Danny junior, shortly before 10 p.m., immediately declared his disgust for the New Zealand government, which he described as "a crowd of scoundrels".
He expressed satisfaction that Britain's Conservative government had been "driven into the sea" and thanked the Northern Ireland Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, and the Irish Government for what he called their "intervention" on his behalf.
Mr Butler fled to New Zealand from the North in 1991 while on bail after being given an 18-month sentence for firearms offences. He claimed that his life had been threatened by the Irish People's Liberation Organisation (IPLO), which had accused him of being an RUC informer.
He said last night that he expected to have meetings with the Government and the SDLP while in Ireland. His intention was to return to New Zealand to his wife, Colette, and his other son, Tony (15), as soon as possible.
Asked if a meeting with the Government had been arranged, he said he understood this was being done.
Referring to the siege at his home last Monday, Mr Butler said that "half the armed defenders" of New Zealand had turned up to remove himself and his family from his home. He claimed that his wife was assaulted. He had produced a "little axe" and, because of this, he had been accused of attacking the officials.
Mr Butler said that he hoped to stay with friends while in Ireland. Invited by a TV camera crew to send a direct message to his wife and son back in New Zealand, he said: "Keep the chins up . . . we'll be with you shortly."
Told that the RUC was considering seeking his extradition from the Republic, Mr Butler asked: "Are you serious?" He added: "Why the hell didn't they do it seven years ago in New Zealand? Do they want to kill me?"
Asked about reports that he would be in fear of his life in Ireland, he said he had not been afraid when the "armed defenders" in New Zealand had raided his home. However, there were "renegade elements" within the IPLO who had branded him an RUC informer for their own reasons. "Everyone knows I was never an informer", he said.
A spokesman for the Northern Ireland Office in Belfast said that no decision had yet been taken on whether to seek Mr Butler's extradition.
Mr Butler arrived in Dublin last night on a flight from Frankfurt, having returned from New Zealand via the South Korean capital, Seoul. When he entered the airport arrivals area he waved to reporters and commented: "It's very, very good to see Irish eyes again."
The former SDLP MP, Dr Joe Hendron, said that he hoped the Irish and British governments would co-operate to try to persuade the New Zealand authorities to allow Mr Butler to return to Auckland. However, he thought it might first be necessary for him to go back to the North to face the legal matters outstanding against him.
