A businessman who is charged in connection with the discovery of a major bomb factory in Co Laois was refused bail in the High Court yesterday. Mr Bryan McNally (56), of Knocksinna Park, Foxrock, Dublin, was arrested when detectives discovered a large arms dump at Clonaslee, Co Laois, last year.
In court yesterday, Det Supt Basil Walsh of the Special Detective Unit said Mr McNally was one of three men arrested under the Offences Against the State Act on June 20th last year during a search of farm outhouses at Clonaslee. Mr McNally is charged with having 16 improvised mortar bombs containing Semtex explosive at Ballyfarrell, Clonaslee, on June 20th, 1996, with intent to endanger life or cause serious injury to property or to enable another person to do so.
He is also charged with knowingly having 16 improvised mortar bombs under such circumstances as to give rise to a reasonable suspicion that he did not have them for a lawful object.
Det Supt Walsh said he believed Mr McNally would not turn up for trial on February 3rd next if he was granted bail.
He based his belief on the serious nature of the charges, the nature of the evidence and the fact that the applicant was "caught red-handed".
Mr Garret Sheehan, solicitor for Mr McNally, said his client owned an engineering business and was married with a number of children. His mother was in poor health and lived in a nursing home in Dublin. Before his arrest, his client would have visited his mother on a regular basis.
Mr Justice Flood said the defendant had been in custody for a long time on a very serious charge. It was the experience of the court that in granting bail in similar cases people had not attended trial.
"Nothing has been offered to me to convince me that he would attend trial if granted bail. I refuse bail," he said.