Vol. 470 No. 1
35 Mr. O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Justice the progress, if any, in the investigation into the murder of Veronica Guerin; and her views on whether there is a requirement for an organised crime unit within the Garda Síochána to tackle organised crime. [18518/96]
It is not the practise for the Minister for Justice to make statements to the House about the progress of individual Garda investigations. All I can propose to say in this case is that I have been informed by the Garda authorities that the matter is the subject of a continuing Garda investigation which will be concluded as soon as possible.
As regards the other matter, there is already a range of specialist units operating within the Garda Síochána which target organised crime. These include the criminal assets bureau, the national drugs unit, the central detective unit, the investigation unit and the bureau of fraud investigations. I am satisfied, from my contacts with the Garda Commissioner, that the activities of those units are sufficiently co-ordinated and focused to deal adequately with organised crime and that the existing structures and their management are best suited to meet the challenge posed by organised crime. The Commissioner has also informed me that there is no practical policing justification for a new and separate organised crime unit and that, of course, he keeps the effectiveness of all of the above units under continuous review.
The Garda Síochána has stated publicly in recent days that the suspects in the Veronica Guerin case have been narrowed down to a few criminals and that it is hoped to bring charges. Surely the Minister, who is accountable to the House for the Garda Síochána, could at least advise as to whether there will be a charge in this case. Can she say whether a person or persons will be charged in the near future for this horrendous offence?
As to the second part of the Minister's reply, the gardaí investigating this case appear to be meeting with success in the battle against organised crime, which bolsters the argument for a special organised crime unit within the Garda to tackle this scourage.
I cannot answer the Deputy's question because I am not the investigating authority. That is the Garda Síochána. When it has completed its investigations it will send the file to the Director of Public Prosecutions, who will make a judgment about whether there will be a prosecution. I will enter into a discussion on the investigation of the awful crime we all want to see brought to a conclusion. As the Deputy knows from newspaper articles, etc., many statements have been taken by the Garda Síochána — I have been seen a figure of up to 1,000. The investigation is ongoing and I am not in a a position to answer his question on whether someone will be charged. That will happen at the end of the investigation if it is so decided by the DPP.
His second point was that the gardaí appear to be having great success in the investigation of this crime. I believe this is because the Commissioner has decided to use the existing units to the best effect. He has assured me there is no need for a separate unit. There are already a number of units available to the gardaí where specialised people come together to deal with a crime such as the one mentioned in the Deputy's question.
It is reported that there were 12 contract killings over the past two years but no one has been charged in respect of any of these offences, let alone convicted. This underlines the argument that there should be an organised crime unit within the Garda Síochána. The success of the unit now operating against organised crime in the investigation of the Veronica Guerin case further emphasises the need for such a unit.
Regardless of whatever title the Deputy, the media or I wish to put on it, every murder is investigated as a murder and not as a murder of a specific person or kind. Until such investigation is completed it is not for me or the Deputy to say whether something is a contract murder, a domestic violence murder, a crime of passion or a murder of any other description. These incidents were all murders and are being investigated by the Garda Síochána.
Given the advice of the Garda Commissioner, I do not believe we need yet another unit. There is a central detective unit, an investigation unit, a bureau of fraud investigation, a national drugs unit and a criminal assets bureau. The resources of these units, depending on the way in which an investigation is proceeding, are available to the Garda Commissioner to deploy whatever way he considers appropriate.
To announce the establishment of yet another unit is not a sufficient response. The Garda Commissioner, the most senior member of the Garda Síochána, is satisfied that the resources and units he has available now are adequate to investigate crimes. He has also assured me that he keeps the effectiveness of all these units under continuous review.
Will the Minister start living in the real world and acknowledge that there is a subculture of organised crime which is inextricably linked to a drugs subculture and that in this context it is clear there were at least 12 contract killings in the country over the past two years for which nobody was charged, let alone convicted? Will she also recognise that one must fight fire with fire and put the structures in place to fight what is a phenomenon in this country?
These were killings and murders. The Deputy, the media or I may describe them as we like but for the Garda Síochána they are murders that require to be investigated and are being investigated. Neither the Deputy nor I can say at present whether somebody will be convicted. People have not been convicted for some of these murders, others are in the process of being investigated.
It is not for me, the members of the media or anybody else to decide that because a murder occured in specific circumstances it needs a particular unit to investigate it. The units are being used effectively, the murders are being investigated and I hope that before too long people will be called to account for them.
People have been charged for many murders over the years, while nobody has been brought to account for others which were never labelled as, for example, contract murders. That is the nature of these kind of crimes. The gardaí will continue to do all in their power to bring somebody to account.
