Two gardai face being sacked after a damning internal inquiry found they got drunk and fought while on armed duty outside the US Embassy in Dublin.
The men, who between them have 35 years service with An Garda Siochana, were armed with handguns when they started drinking during a 12-hour shift outside the Embassy. One of the officers was later caught drink driving after leaving his post early.
It is understood the results of the internal inquiry have been sent to Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy recommending that both men either resign or be sacked.
Although in the uniformed branch of the force the two gardai were transferred temporarily into the plain clothes division to man the security post at the Embassy in the leafy suburb of Ballsbridge in the south side the city.
Carrying standard Smith and Wesson guns, they began a 12-hour shift along with a uniformed officer at the front gates of the compound. The officers began drinking heavily in a nearby pub during a break and remained until the early hours of the morning.
A fight broke out over whose round it was and the pair were separated before returning to their post where they continued to row in front of civilian security and US marines who were on duty inside the compound.
At around 5am one of the men decided to leave his position and go home - two hours before his shift ended - and handed his weapon over to the uniform guard on duty. As he drove home he was stopped at Ballymum, on the north side of the city, around 20 minutes later. He has since been convicted of drink driving.
The firearm was returned to his garda station by the colleague when the shift ended at 7am. The two gardai, who were based at a south central city station, were suspended from the force following the incident in June 2005.
Abandoning a post, drinking on duty and brawling in public are all serious offences in the garda discipline code. They faced numerous breaches of discipline and have been found guilty on each count. The men and Commissioner Conroy have 15 days to make a final decision, which can be appealed.
Following the incident, the Department of Justice apologised to the American Ambassador to Ireland for the serious security breach at what is regarded as the city's most high-risk target for foreign terrorist attack.
PA